One of my New Year's resolutions is to be a better blogger! I used to be great at journal keeping, but now that I have two little rugrats it's literally like pulling teeth to write any significant thing down, what a struggle. So I pledge to be better! Cross my fingers, here's to a new year!
Look at this primadonna...she cracks me up!



Whatcha gotta do just to get anything cleaned!

"I like 'em round, I like 'em chuncky, and sorta lumpy!" (Madagascar 2) Look at that chubby belly of baby Beau's, so cute!

Uncle Lance and Emmy during a Sunday night dinner and a movie at the Banham's

So, I totally had to post this picture. My dear beloved husband, bless his soul, is the cleanest, most organized pack rat I have ever met. I finally begged him to go through his tubberware bins and throw out anything that he didn't use in the last year. I was shocked when he actually did! I had to take a picture just to prove it!

Yeah! We finally crawled!!!! January 31st. I was so excited because I was home to witness her first crawl. I was worried that I would miss it and be at work. I was lucky enough to see Eliza's first crawl and wanted the same for Beau. What a little speedster...

...and up goes the gate! What a cute little jail bird. :)

JUST THE TWO OF US :)


Eliza asked me if she could wear her swim suit and go to Cherry Hill's "Sleeping Baby Dragon water slide!" yesterday, so we filled the tub up and pretended that it was Summer time! I can't wait for Summer!

Christmas in a "nut shell," a chestnut shell that is.....

OUR CHRISTMAS THUS FAR...

"SANTA'S VISIT!"
Wow what a surprise! Santa showed up on our door step Sunday night! He must have been in the neighborhood checking off his naughty and nice list and decided to make sure LuLu was being a good girl!

She wasn't nervous around him just shy and excited! Santa asked Eliza what she would like him to bring her on Christmas morning. She told him little babies and little cribs.


Isabeau is teething, she is such a trooper! I rarely have to give her medicine. She loves when I freeze water in her binkies. This picture is hilarious because that's all she does all day long is have something hanging out of her mouth.

She has the funniest grins!

MAKING MARSHMALLOW SNOWMEN,YUM YUM!

We have this glass Christmas tree up on the table filled with peppermint candies. Well, the other day I was downstairs folding laundry and Eliza kept going upstairs and wouldn't come down for long periods of time. After thinking, she's probably up to no good, I went upstairs to see what she was doing. Sure enough-up to no good! She pretty much ate half of the peppermints we put in that tree. Brother!

I was pulling out Christmas stockings for Eliza to put under the tree and she said, "Momma what are those?" After telling her that they were our Christmas stockings she put them where she thought they needed to go.

"Bust a Move!"

Eliza loves to help dad exercise-

she tries and copies everything that he does-pushups, situps, even pullups-

she just needs a little help from daddy!


These are just a few reasons why we love being parents!

Eliza had just had a "screaming-tired melt down!" I was rushing just to bath her and put her pj's on before she exploded into a thousand pieces! But after I wrapped her little body up, rocked and sang to her, she passed out. I love the way they smell after bath time and singing them to sleep.

Look at this little one think'n she's a big girl!

Isabeau just learned to sit up, she is six months old. She also just got her bottom teeth-Eliza didn't get teeth until her first birthday! I wished that Beau would just slow down-I have to sprinkle shrinking powder (baby powder) on her all the time to stop her from growing!


"Sun Fuzzies!"

Eliza loves catching sun fuzzies(the dust particles that you see when the sun shines bright through the windows). When the sun shines through our dormer windows we have to stop everything and catch sun fuzzies!

My two babies! Sometimes Eliza tells me that she wants to be a baby instead of a big girl. So I let her.

"Cool Shades Dude!"

She'll throw a fit in the morning when she's eating her cereal if the sun comes out too early and blinds her, so we keep her sun glasses inside for just such occasions!

"Hey George, look'n good Castanza!"



Isabeau has decided that she hates being wrapped up in a taco-burrito, so we only wrap her bottom half. Her free hands are all over the place as she winds down. I walked into check on her and had to snap this picture. She had a death grip!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!
WHEN I ASKED ELIZA WHAT SHE WANTED TO BE FOR HALLOWEEN, SHE GOT DOWN ON ALL FOURS AND GROWLED "A TIGER MOM!"

LULU LOVES PRETENDING TO BE A TIGER. WHEN SHE'S A FEROCIOUS TIGER SHE'LL HISS A LOUD GROWL AT ME AND I'LL PRETEND TO JUMP LIKE I'M AFRAID OF HER. AFTER, SHE'LL HURRY AND TELL ME "IT'S OK MOMMY I A NICE TIGER!" THEN SHE'LL LOOK AT ME WITH HER "NICE" EYES AND MEOW A QUIET MEOW.

IT'S A HANDY-ME-DOWN-HALLOWEEN FOR ISABEAU-SHE IS A SKUNK, BUT FOR HALLOWEEN I THINK I'M GOING TO BORROW BRODY'S CHICKEN COSTUME,JUST SO THAT WHEN I'M OLD AND SENILE AND LOOKING THROUGH MY PHOTO ALBUMS I WON'T GET THE TWO OF THEM MIXED UP!

Halloween at the Banham's






Halloween at the Brenchley's

Marsha and Emmy as Bee's

One of our favorite uncles Lance-we missed Reed!

Eliza being buried under the leaves!

Finding candy in the pile of leaves with Grandma Brenchley!




Baby Beau as a "cluck-cluck!"

Lu Lu needs a nap!

Trick or Treat at Brody and Sara's house!

A Tribute To Sisters...

I smile because you are my sister, I laugh because there is nothing you can do about it! - Anonymous author

Big sisters are the crab grass in the lawn of life. - Charles M. Schultz

A sister is both your mirror and your opposite. - Elizabeth Fishel

Of two sisters, one is always the watcher, one the dancer. - Louise Gluck

A sister is the one friend who remains when all others walk away. - Unknown author

My sister taught me everything I really need to know and she was only in sixth grade at the time. - Linda Sunshine

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost. - Marion C. Garretty

When sisters stand shoulder to shoulder who stands a chance against us? - Pam Brown

We acquire friends and we make enemies, but our sisters come with the territory. - Evelyn Loeb

What's the good of news if you haven't a sister to share it? - Jenny DeVries

She is your mirror, shining back at you with a world of possibilities. She is your witness, who sees you at your worst and best and loves you anyway. She is your partner in crime, your midnight companion, someone who knows when you are smiling, even in the dark. She is your teacher, your defense attorney, your personal press agent, even your shrink. Some days, she's the reason you wish you were an only child. - Barbara Alpert

"Happy 24th of July!" Every year we get to go and celebrate Pioneer Day in Mendon. Berry grew up in Mendon and when the 24th roles around we chase chickens and bunnies, eat snow cones and cotton candy and Berry reminisces of the good 'ol days!



Isabeau trying to take a cat nap. By the way we sunburned the bridge of her nose just a scoush and don't ask me how??? I had my pastey casper #2 covered the whole time! My poor little powders, the sun will never be your friend!

Marsh, Dan and the kids helping us celebrate! The kids had a blast.

One of Eliza's cousins won this rabbit during the animal races. Eliza got to chase after the animals this year because she is two, I think she liked the chicken chase the best because it was the first chase, but she loved the bunnies and hung out with this little guy at lunch.

"Yum-Cotton Candy! Mommy's favorite fair food...

...and soon Eliza's too!



A Day at Bear Lake


Berry and Emmy feeding the Seagulls

"Aaahhh, this is the life!"



"Baby Beau Hang In There!"


Check out this goose egg! All it took was one big tumble and stumble down the front porch w/ her croc shoes on, which we no longer wear. They are just too bulky for this little two year old who's just learning to "bend those knees!"
(we always joke about LuLu bending her knees because when she walks or runs she's so stiff-legged and uncordinated that she falls and trips alot-so whenever she's running and playing we have to yell out "LuLu Bend Those Knees!").