Springing into Our Lives

I cannot believe it has been nearly two months since I last posted about what has been going on in our life. Needless to say, it's been a lot in the past two months.

The girls are growing up so big. They are both getting along so well and learning to share, that's been a big obstacle at our house. Evie hasn't caught onto the whole sharing part yet, and Bella doesn't understand why she can't play nice. In addition to dance, Bella has started taking swim lessons. She is loving every minute of it, and it is never easy getting her out of the pool. She attends with two other girls and we can definitely tell Bella has no fear. She willingly dunks her entire face under the water, whereas the other girls are afraid to even put their noses in the water. It's a sight to see! We've seen how truly independent and brave she really is!

Here we are at cousin Katie's baby shower... all the girls with Nana Jo.

The girls loved playing out in the snow, but the weather has started to warm up lately. Santa brought a toboggan for Christmas, so we decided to try it out one day. Bella loved being pulled around by Papa, and Evie went for a small ride but didn't enjoy the bumps too much.

Today Nana Jo turns 90 years young! It was wonderful to spend breakfast with her. No the cake was not for breakfast.... it was our breakfast dessert! We had a big party for her, and Bella really loved getting ready for that. She knows that after Nana Jo's birthday it is Easter and then her birthday. We've been working hard to plan her Pinkalicious Party, she can hardly wait!

Ahhh Evelyn, so sweet, and such a terror at times. She has started crawling, climbing up stairs, and straining to hold onto anything to prop herself up. Nights are still a little rough for us. She was doing so well until the daylight savings time change and then for some reason she thought it was acceptable to get up again. Someone please fill her in! She loves to eat, that's for sure. Her favorite foods are crackers, cheese chunks, and the magnets from the fridge. Granted she doesn't eat them, but they are constantly in her mouth. She also likes to play with Bella's kitchen set, play with the dishes in the cubbard and dishwasher, and pull Hunter's hair. There is rarely a dull moment around this household. Mommy is still doing great working at the library and enjoying her time with the girls. Daddy is still going strong at school. This summer he might be working rather than going to school, but that's still undecided yet. Otherwise, all is well. We hope everyone is having a great spring!

Happy New Year!

The holidays have certainly been good to us all. We had a lovely Christmas in Ohio surrounded by all our family. Bella loved putting the Christmas lights on everyday, and it seemed like the Christmas ornaments changed daily as often as she moved them around. When Christmas morning rolled around, it was hard to believe all the presents we awoke to find under the tree. But the girls had no trouble tearing through them. Evelyn got an adorable new headband along with new toys, and Bella got a new sleeping bag and video game. New Years was also eventful - we rang in the new year using Nana's new fondue set and party poppers. Evie is growing bigger by the minute - she's over 20 lbs., already wearing 18-24 month clothing, and seems to be exceeding Bella when she was this age. She loves to shake her head "NO" and roll around on the floor. We've been working on getting her to crawl but she just seems to scoot backward at this point. Bella had become an excellent helper around the house. She loves to sweep the floor, has started completing her daily chores, and has taken a fascination to stringing beads, thanks to Nana Jo. We visit Nana Jo once a week, if not more, while Daddy is away at school. He's in his second semester at Akron and so far it's going well. Mommy is working at the library and loves being back there, especially now that she doesn't have to grade papers and plan extensive lessons for teaching. 

Turkey Time

We just returned from a trip down to Virgina for Thanksgiving. It was great to see everyone, and Bella really enjoyed her time at all the various places playing, seeing animals, and of course, eating. We first saw Grandma Belinda at the SPCA, so Bella was in awe of all the animals. She was taken with these little kitty cats and was sad we couldnt take one home. We stayed with Pop and Nana Bev so that was a treat! Bella loved her doll and tutu that Nana Bev made. She played princess and made wishes come true while we were there. Thanksgiving was so much fun with all the kids playing together. The weather was so nice on Friday we took the girls to the park to play. All in all it was a long drive for them (luckily they slept most of the time in the car) but we were thankful to be with great family and friends for the holiday. 

Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween! We are still enjoying the fall season, but that hasn't stopped Bella from playing dress up everyday in all her many dresses. Initially she wanted to be a princess for Halloween, and then one day it was a bride. Thus, she appears as the beautiful bride above, complete with the veil and garter. Evelyn had several tough choices for costumes but decided to be a skeleton. This was the first year for Bella to go trick-or-treating. It turned out to be a chilly night, but we were able to hit about 30 houses in 20 minutes in Erin's neighborhood. And the goody bag Nana Bev made for Bella was packed! She really enjoyed the trick-or-treating experience and is already talking about what she wants to be next year.

Our little lady has been Evelyn has started to eat baby food. She has shown such an interest in food, and she even tries to eat our food. The other night we were eating popcorn and she grabbed the bag in an attempt to help herself. Needless to say popcorn went all over and she stuffed in a piece of the package into her mouth. Guess the sweet potatoes and green beans at dinner wasn't cutting it. She is so long and so chunky she is already in 12 month clothing, and she just turned 5 months! 

Evie Turns 4 Months Old

Evelyn's baptism

Johnny Appleseed Festival

Who, me?

Smile! Can you see all the drool on Evelyn's shirt? Oh my!

Fun at the park with Mommy and Daddy

Happy Four Months Evelyn!

Well summer flew by in a breeze! We can't believe the leaves are already changing (this didn't happen until November in Texas!) and jackets need to be worn outside. Bella and Evie are really enjoying their time with family. One day last week when Bella awoke, she told her Nana how happy she was to be in Ohio. Priceless thoughts from a three year old! So to enjoy the beautiful weather and festivities around here, we have been very busy! There was a Johnny Appleseed Festival we attended, Evelyn was baptised in August, storytimes have started up, football is everywhere, ballet classes happen once a week, Aunt E had her birthday, and all the day-to-day events. We cant seem to fit everything in!
Evelyn had a doctor's appointment for her four month checkup and she is doing great. She is 27 inches (must take after her daddy), 17 lbs 5.5 ounces (big for her age but that fits with her length). Needless to say she's in 9 to 12 month clothing already. Thank goodness we kept all of Bella's old clothes because otherwise we'd be in big trouble for how quickly she goes through clothes. It's been nice getting clothes as gifts, but honestly she can't wear all the outfits fast enough before she's outgrown them. Right now she just loves to watch her big sister act so silly and enjoys watching her puppy play on her activity mat. Evelyn does not like to be on her back at all, except when she sleeps, so she is constantly carted around in someone's arms or in her zoom-zoom. It's amazing to relive all the baby experiences again, and we honestly couldn't be happier with our beautiful family.

Moving Madness

Well the time has finally arrived - we have moved to Ohio! Bella is very excited to be by so many family friends. It seems like everyday holds a new adventure for her, and I no longer mean going to the grocery store. She has started homeschooling lessons with her Mommy on the alphabet. Last week we started "A is for Apple" and this week we worked on "B is for Bird." I am very proud to say she can recognize nearly all the letters in the alphabet and really enjoys her lessons. She woke up one morning and the first thing she said was, "Can we do our lessons today?" It's great to see her so interested in learning. Bella has also started taking dance lessons thanks to her Aunt E. She is learning ballet and tap. Next on the list will be swimming lessons.

Evelyn is growing bigger each day. She has been a wonderful baby! Her schedule is pretty set most nights - up once or twice. One night she actually slept from 10pm to 5am! Yay little one! She's interested in fans, balloons, and loves to be part of the action the rest of the family is involved in. She's already got some personality to her.

We have been up in Ohio for nearly a month now, but Daddy has been in Texas wrapping up work and the house. Everyone is anxious to see him and have him up here too to partake in all the activities. Pictures will soon be posted - Bryan has the computer so unfortunately our photos will have to wait. Moving can be so chaotic!

Welcome Little Sister!

Evelyn Sue Rowell was born May 27, 2011 at 2:02pm. Mommy went into the hospital Thursday night to begin the pictosin for the induction on Friday. After a long night, the fun began bright and early Friday morning with breaking my water, getting the epidural, and more pain killers. By the time Mommy was ready for the doctor to deliver the baby, Evelyn was ready to pop out. Compared to Bella, this baby was a breeze! Goodbye two hours of labor, hello ten minutes! Of course, Mommy had lots of drugs in her and barely felt a thing. Bella couldnt wait to hold her sister, and when Nana asked to hold her she was told "Just one time, Nana. She's my sister." Since then, we've been enjoying having a baby in the house again. Hunter loved investigating the baby - he gives her lots of kisses everyday. Bella loves to pick out her clothes and watch us change her. She's also fascinated at the funny faces and noises Evelyn makes. We're all so happy to have been blessed with another princess. We know her big sister will be, as she is now, a big help to all of us.