We've been enjoying the Christmas season! We started it all up in Vermont with the annual tree lighting in Burlington the day after Thanksgiving. We had a great time up there with family and friends! We also did the annual holiday festival in our town which included a house tour, Victorian tea and our niece performing as a rat in The Nutcracker.
This past weekend we had Nanny visiting from Vermont and we have had a great time. I completed most of my shopping and we put up our tree(bought at the firehouse since it poured rain and we couldn't cut one down). Love the tradition of hunting for the perfect tree though and being outside so hoping to go next weekend with Grandpa and MomLeigh to get theirs.
Ella is loving reading Christmas stories and Connor is enjoying taking ornaments off the tree!


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Look below to visit one of my very favorite blogs and enter to win some great giveaways...
Happy Holiday Season!!

Christmas Cards

Every year I say I am going to get started early on my Christmas Cards and this year I am really going to do it! I always look at various websites deciding where to get my cards-who has the best deal and who has the cutest cards. This year I love Shutterfly's designs-they have very cute cards for very good prices. I love how easy it is to use your own photos and preview your card quickly. My favorite cards on Shutterfly are the ones which feature a few simple pictures along with the family initial. "Initially Yours" and the "Peppermint Pink" 5x7 flat cards are super cute.I just love all the designs Shutterfly has to choose from and how all the different cards are set up to feature certain numbers of pictures. Takes the pressure off as I am always sure to find a design that will work with the pictures I want to use.

You can check out Shutterfly and pick out YOUR favorite designs by visiting their website;
www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards

They also feature very cute calendars that are super easy to personalize with your own pictures and give as holiday gifts! You can see the wall calendars at:
http;//www.shutterfly.com/calendars/wall-calendars.

If you've already picked out your holiday cards, you can always visit Shutterfly for upcoming party invitations. Check them out at http;//www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/invitations.

Connor turns one!

He's an official one year-old! Tomorrow is his well check so we will see how much he weighs, etc.
He loves to push anything he can to "walk"...says Ella, mama and"SSS" for "Sadie"
Very cute-he melts our hearts everyday!


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Fall

Time is flying by-Ella turned 3 and Connor is turning 1 tomorrow! Connor's first year was somewhat hard since his theme seemed to be crying! He's a snuggly, cute guy though and we can't imagine life without him!
We celebrated Ella, Ava and Connor's birthdays 2 weeks back with our families including Nanny and Bubba from Vermont! Ella LOVED her bike from Nanny and Bubba and Connor got his first "ride-on" which he loves. He is all boy-climbing everything and loves anything with wheels! Ella goes to school 3 mornings a week and seems to be thriving there with a great routine- her favorite school activities are"snack" and " outside time"!
The two keep me busy, but they're so fun-we treasure these times with them as we know the years go all too fast!






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August in a Nutshell

In a nutshell - Connor's 9 months old, sleeping a little better, but not well enough to help mom regain her full brain functions yet. Everyone LOVES the new swing we finally put up and we try to get out there at least once a day. Connor has revealed his full blown personality which is: opinionated, stubborn, funny, talkative and a little on the fearless side. He lives to take anything of his sisters and loves to push her buttons. He's crawling much to our reluctance...we just cant believe he's already "there". Time sure does fly! But we are excited for him and smile watching how proud he is of himself as he crawls across the room. Ella is becoming a preschooler through and through. She'll start at her little Montessori school in just a few weeks-can't wait to see how that goes!
Connor has his 9 month appt in a week (rescheduled because we were in VT) so we'll see what his "stats" are then.
Ella's doing so much more for herself and by herself that mommy can't believe the difference 10 months make! She still loves her dolls, dressing up and playing outside. What we've learned to be true: The days are long, but the years are short. Can't believe the summer's almost over!

July

I have been terrible about blogging!! We have been very busy...this past weekend we had Nanny and Bubba visiting from Vermont-will post pictures soon...we had a good time with them swimming at their hotel, making pizza on the grill and they babysat for Justin and I so we could go out to dinner for our anniversary! We went out to Rizzuto's where I had a yummy scallop/grilled veggie salad and Justin had pasta with clam sauce...we went to the local scoop shop after dinner and ran into Nanny, Bubba and the kids there! Ella was excited to see us drive up!
Connor has been super clingy these days-probably due to his 6 teeth he now has (4 on top, 2 on the bottom)-he waves, claps and shakes his head on command now! So cute. He still doesn't nap very well at all which makes for a TIRED mama! Loves his rice cereal and babyfood these days.

I'll try and find a few pictures for you until the next time!

Graduation Day

Today was Ella and Ava's "graduation" from the little mom and me group we have gone to for the last year...Ella will being going to the classes in the summer (and maybe Ava?) so it wasn't goodbye forever at this point...playtime, circle time with songs each child picked out, counting, alphabet, then snack (ice cream with whipped cream and sprinkles!) followed by "diplomas"...very cute...Ella always loves her "school day" each week...hard to believe next year will be preschool already! I am NOT ready!!

Connor is 6 months old!

Wow...where has that time gone? Sloooow down! Time is moving so fast and our baby boy is 6 months old! LOVE this age-he is full of smiles...all day long. He loves his big sister and laughs when you tickle him...he sits up on his own...and grabs at toys...he eats babyfood(loves peas and sweet potatoes)...still only naps in the carseat or stroller (despite my best efforts)...and still wakes up twice a night...loves to be held all.day.long...

6 months is such a fun age...still that adorable and innocent baby, but interacting with us so much more each day...

Here are the 6 month stats:

2 teeth on bottom
20 lbs 3 oz!! 95th percentile
26 1/4 inches-75th percentile for height
Didn't even cry when he got his 2 shots at the dr.!

WE LOVE YOU, CONNOR DAVID!! Can't wait for the next 6 months with you!

Before I was a mom...

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys
or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not
my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind
and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child
so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night
watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because
I didn't want to put him down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces
when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small
could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of
having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel
to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond
between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small
could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night
every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.
-Author Unknown

Ella-isms

Ella cracks us up daily with her Ella-isms...like the other day when she was remarking that there was a dog hair on something and she called it "hairdog"...and repeatedly calls dog hair that now...she also heard a woodpecker outside yesterday and we were talking about it and today we heard it again and she told me she heard the "peckerwood"....no joke....and the other day we were at our friends' house and we were talking about walking down to the pond they have on their property and as we approached the pond Ella said... "I see the puddle"...meaning the pond...gotta love that girl...

Easter!

We had a wonderful day together celebrating with our family. Ella loved the egg hunt this year and was a very well-behaved girl during church!

March brought us lots of sickness (yuck)-Ella was very sick with strep throat for 6 days, Connor had a double ear infection and then pneumonia...ugh. He was on 3 medications and now is down to just the nebulizer 2x a day until the cough is gone...In othe news, he got his first tooth (bottom left) and is starting to eat rice cereal and veggies( so far has had peas, sweet potatoes and green beans...)

We are enjoying the nice weather!

Flashback...

One year ago we were chasing a 1 year-old around and now we have a big-girl (almost 2.5)and baby Connor who back then was just a tiny little speck of a baby!
We are b-u-s-y these days chasing an energetic toddler, changing and feeding Connor, going to playgroup and Mr. Turtle (2 year-old version of preschool with Mom)all the while keeping up with daily life! Connor has his 4-month check up this week so will post his "stats" soon! :)

Here are a few pictures from LAST winter...just for fun...

Mid-Winter

Well, since the last post, we have been busy, busy. We've tried to keep ourselves entertained while stuck in the house during these cold winter months...we've been staying away from crowded places since Connor is still very young so we've been more cooped up than usual...lots of coloring, play-dough and stickers to keep the 2 year-old somewhat entertained...can't wait for warmer weather!

Ella is a bit whiny these days and has the typical tantrums that come with the age, but she is still so fun to be around...she loves to help out with baby, "Tonnor" as she calls him, and likes to bring us diapers and wipes and push him in his swing. Ella loves to read books and her favorite these days is "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" which we have read 100 times already. Dressing and undressing is also a popular activity and several times I have found her naked in her crib after her nap! We still go to her little "Mommy and Me" school once a week and playgroup once a week which she loves.

Connor is drooling like crazy and I will bet he will have a tooth or two in a month or so...he still sleeps great at night...going to bed around 9 or 10 and sleeping until 3-ish and back down until 7 or 8!! Love it. He is still colicky and sometimes screams for hours in the evening before settling down and sleeping, but it seems to be getting better...I've cut dairy out of my diet which may be helping also...still spits-up after every feeding and is still on reflux meds....next month the pediatrician said we may want to start rice cereal which may help the reflux...we will see..

Happy Winter...can't wait for Spring! :)