Lilypie Fourth Birthday tickers
Friday, December 31, 2010

Visitors






Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Aquarium

Im tired. Words to follow :)






Sunday, December 26, 2010

Christmas Cheer

Our princesses were once again showered with gifts thanks to their very generous aunts, uncles, grandparents, and great grandparents. Riley dressed the part soon after receiving this little number. The biggest hits of the day were the decorative suitcases that can hold all their new toys and be wheeled around when a quick escape is needed.


Before receiving her suitcase, Sanna was forced to take off down the hall carrying both of the new doll houses her and Riley received. She was caught shortly after this photo by Riley and one house was confiscated.


My skills at the group shot are improving. It helps to have good subjects. Nick has a little captain in him as you can see. Sanna has mastered the cheese face while Riley cant be bothered.


The excitement of the day was a bit much for our youngest daughter. She couldnt even sit up straight after a while.


Just like their father, new electronics were a cause for much excitement. These little 'laptops' send them emails from their loved ones and track their learning progress. I will give them report cards every month as a continued attempt to foster competition.


Saturday, December 25, 2010

Christmas Treat


Two blog posts in two days. We will see if we can keep the streak alive tomorrow.
Friday, December 24, 2010

Florida, Round 3

Our third trip to Florida with the girls began with our least eventful flight. Weeks of preparation went into 2 hours of entertainment. iPods, iPads, dvd players, lollipops, and coloring books did the trick, although it took a few too many lollipops for Riley than we would have liked. The only issues came after arriving at the gate and having to wait to deplane for 20 minutes. Riley asked us 156 times why she couldnt get off the plane. Sanna writhed around on Laurin, whining for freedom. For our first night in Florida, the girls rewarded us with a 430 AM wake up call. Thankfully, the ridiculousness of waking up at 430 resulted in a 3 hour nap t 10. That was their first nap in weeks (we have figured out that putting them in separate rooms stops Sanna from bothering Riley why she tries to sleep.) Our only adventure for the day (besides forcing my lazy butt to run three miles) was going to the beach. The ample sunlight and adventurous subjects led to some photo gold. Enjoy. More to come tomorrow.


Riley and Sanna like to be thrown in the air as high as possible. Riley has added a degree of difficulty by flailing her legs around in the air, making the catch far more challenging.



Nick and Katie were practicing their moves for their first dance as a married couple. Back to the drawing board I think.



The girls parlayed their gymnastic lessons into a mean game of hopscotch. It was like watching karate kid as their turned their 'together, apart' skills into hopscotch dominance.



This photo was actually taken on the way down. Sanna stiff-legged approach to being tossed in the air allowed me to throw her about 10 feet up.


Tuesday, December 21, 2010

A Very Smith Christmas!

Last weekend we headed to Grammy and Papa's house to partake in the highly anticipated Smith Christmas. The girls were so excited to see Grammy, Papa, Aunt Jenna, Tom and, for the very first time, Tom's 2 year old daughter, and their new BFF, Genevieve. We all had a great time hanging out and catching up.

One of the highlights of Riley's trip was when Grammy offered to paint her toenails for the very first time. Riley chose a nice, subtle, orangey color to make her toes beautiful. She was very patient and still while Grammy did the painting, and then sat staring at their beauty while they dried. She had an ear to ear smile and proudly showed off her toes to anyone who would listen.


Santa came and filled all of the kid's stockings with lots of goodies. The kids could not get over how he knew EXACTLY what they liked. Amazing!



All 3 girls got a puppy that makes all kinds of sounds. They came in fancy carrying bags along with several veterinary tools to ensure that they stay healthy. The girls all decided that the stethoscopes made fabulous leashes.



The Smith girls got a Weeble house so that all of their Weebles have a place to party. Sanna was especially excited to add to her beloved Weeble family. Pretty soon she is going to need a moving van to carry all of her Weebles and Weeble accessories around.


They also got a Wonder Pets schoolhouse that talks and sings. Now baby animals that I didn't even know existed are being saved by Linny, Tuck and Ming Ming too.


The girls finally cooperated long enough to get a cute picture with Grammy. Can you guess what they were doing in this picture? That's right, watching Wonder Pets, of course.


The girls have started being more cooperative in the picture taking department. They will pretend like they actually like each other, and even put their arms around one another for at least 5 to 10 seconds at a time. Riley still insists on rockin the squinty cheese smile, but we'll take it, at least it's a smile.


Family picture time; not too shabby. What a good lookin bunch!


Now the REAL picture. This is definitely more reflective of who we are! :) Merry Christmas everyone!!



Saturday, December 11, 2010

Holiday Party

The annual neighborhood holiday party was last night. Thanks to our good friend Melissa, we have been tasked with planning this event the last two years. This year ended up being far less stressful than last year, but the number of children increased greatly, resulting in lots of shopping/wrapping. As a last minute purchase I picked up some balloons and sharpies to entertain the kids prior to Santa's arrival. It worked very well for Riley, until the balloons started popping due to the sharp tips of the markers. There were a few tears shed, but the time passed before the tears was worth it.


Blowing up the balloons turned out to be much harder than expected. Watching 5 adults nearing hyperventilation was pretty amusing. I almost passed out towards the end. No amount of stretching could make these balloons easily inflated.


Sanna's artwork was impressive as always. Very little marker got on her face/body, which was nice.


I am not sure how Laurin pulled this shot off, but ill take it. I am sure someone's hair was pulled immediately after this.


This was taken before the party. Riley didnt like being told she was pretty, thus the scowl.


Overall, the party was a hit. Thankfully our girls waited until the final moments to fill their diapers with the aroma of hot death. We were the only ones around to enjoy it as we finished cleaning up. Sanna took over Riley's role as 'afraid of everyone girl'. Neither girl would sit on Santa's lap, so we didnt get that photo op, but that may change in the future. When Sanna saw that Santa had gotten her two new Weebles, her feelings towards him changed completely. Riley got a princess doll, which was also well received. We will see what happens when we next cross paths with the man in the red suit.
Thursday, December 2, 2010

Best Two Days Ever!!

Now, as you all know, I love my children dearly, however, two days in a row without them every now and then are certainly welcomed. Grandma and Papa Hendrickson offered to take the kids off of our hands for a few days so that they could get their grandchildren "fill" before heading to Florida for 3 months. I had to think long and hard about handing my darling little angels over for that long ;), but in the end I conceded, resulting in THE BEST TWO DAYS EVER!! I did miss the little poodles, but it was absolutely GLORIOUS to go Christmas shopping and do household chores without whining, fighting, running, meltdowns, etc. I also discovered the sound of................. wait for it ............... silence. It. Was. Beautiful. I think that the girls probably appreciated their time away from us as well. Two whole days without scolding, nagging, correcting, or compromising. Absolute heaven, I'm sure. Here are a few more reasons why the girls loved their time away from home:

They loved Grandma and Papa's Charlie Brown Christmas tree and all of the ornaments. It was too hard to find the self control not to touch each and every one of them.


They fed all of the duckles and goosels what was left of the stale bread that they didn't eat themselves.


They ran up and down the hallway of Grandma and Papa's condo.


They jumped and bounced all over the seat cushions.



They danced in Grandma's old dance recital tutus.


They formed their very own rock band and became world renowned percussionists on Grandma's set of pots and pans.


Finally, the best two days ever came to an end and life resumed its normal patterns which, it turns out, aren't so bad after all (however, any time anyone wants to take the kids for a few days, please don't hesitate to ask). :) Thanks Grandma and Papa!