CONGRATULATIONS DADDY

HOORAY for DADDY.

Our Daddy is the super duper smartest, best worker ever. He has gotten his much deserved, 10 year goal, promotion to Financial Sales Manager with GE.

He has worked OH SO VERY hard for this and has been dreaming of it since well before I met him. We are so proud of you Justin :)

His start date is July 16th. Not bad, in terms of pre warning for GE..........

This means bye bye Atlanta, hello Nashville. Justin will be starting a new territory in TN. So we'll locate ourselves in Nashville in hopes that I can scrape my way into Vandy for doctoral work in Fall of 2008.

Looks like our girls will stay southern bells. Who knows, maybe we'll get a musician out of it?!?!?!??!?!?!?

PLAY BALL

Here are shots from the famous and secretive "Play Ball" class that Ana and her buddy Tripp took at the local Park and Rec this Spring. ANA LOVES this class. We drop the kids off and have to leave for 30 minutes.

This past week was the last week, so we got to come and watch.Look how cute they are!!!


The hoops help promote Spatial awareness

I'm WALKING

not on my own yet, but I cruise with my walker. It's SO FUN.
(here she is with her first few "walker steps" Hesitant, but not anymore. Now she flies through the house)

Taylor's 11 mo. Vocab

Carving out a path for herself in our house Taylor's vocabulary is BOOMING!
I think she has really grabbed onto the notion that to get what she wants it's much more efficient to just ask for it (instead of crying).

Here is her current vocab. (and by vocab I mean uses independently ALL THE TIME and appropriately)

mama = mom
dada = daddy
mimi = blankie (her favorite green one NEVER leaves our site)
Aaaanaaa = Ana
Deh te = Dexter
OOF OOF = dog
cak cak = duck
oo oo oo = monkey
ca ker = cracker
baba = bottle
wa wa = water
mo = more (also does the sign)
aahh dah = all done
da = down NOW
bi bi = Bye with a wave
iieee = High with a wave
up = pick me up
beh = bed
bubble = bath and pool bubbles
dai dai with sign = daiper please
tutle = turtle
bae = bear
ki teee = kitty
baaaaaaaaa = sheep

There are A LOT more progressing every day, but these are the obvious ones that she uses all the time. Pretty impressive if you ask me, not that I'm biased at all ;)

Daddy and his Girls

Daddy did some serious bonding this weekend as the guilt of being away from them for 3 consecutive weeks sets in. So sweet they are!

Swimming, Swimming and more Swimming

This summer is sure to be a great one with Ana on her way to being an independent swimmer and Taylor enjoying the ride (literally)

Here is Ana pushing Taylor in the deep end around the pool. I'm off with my umbrella drink soaking in the southern sun. OK not really, but that sure is a good mental image to drudge up during pool CHAOS!!!!!

Ana blowing bubbles while she kicks kicks kicks (she's getting SO GOOD at swimming)


Here she is swimming all on her own.

CAN YOU SEE THE BLUE QUIVERING LIPS??????????

And believe it or not, Taylor actually warmed up to this boat thing. I think it was when Ana started pushing her. She loves ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING that involves big sister Ana.



OOOO I'm JUST SO CUTE!!! Can you BELIEVE I'm almost 1 already?!?!?!??!?!

POOL PARTY

YEAH YEAH YEAH. Our pool is finally open. We had a blast this weekend at the pool opening party.

We picniced with all our friends and bared the COOOOOLLLD water. I think I can finally say that my body is Southern. We pulled up to the pool Sat and it was a BEAUTIFUL 78 degrees out. Here is my response, "OH it's COLD out. We can't swim. URGH!". Now, come a year ago, I was complaining that the pool wasn't open yet during these beautiful 70 degree spring days. Shows how quickly us humans adapt, doesn't it?

ANYWHO. Look at the cutie pies and all their friends at our potluck picnic!
Now you see why leaving here is going to be hard on all us girls.


Here is Taylor and her buddy, Molly. Molly lives 2 houses down from us and we share everything (even strep throat.. sorry Molly)


Come on Evan....
let's get wet- it's not that cold. Yes I know our lips are blue...
WHO CARES?!?!?!?

WAIT A MINUTE.... is that Mickey I see.
Yes. Yes. It is. It is Mickey I see!!!



Ana: You too Tay Tay. Let me blow up your floaty boat for you. Let's SWIM!



Taylor: Thanks, but I'm good over here. I think I'll just catch some rays.
(our little prima donna herself)


FINE. In I go
(our little dare devil, bull dozer continues in her "nothing stops me" tradition)


And we finished it up with, what else? ICE CREAM!
As if the kids weren't all cold enough already!!!

SHREK

is a green Ogar and he's a little doll

We are obsesses with Shrek in this house. We sing the song, watch the movie and now... thanks SO MUCH to Dan, Lukas and Jodi- we can talk and play with him too.

Here is Ana at Build-a-Bear making her very own "little green Shrek Ogar doll"


Taylor joined in too... look how in awe she is at the big stuffing machine!!!!

Ana Takes the Plunge

We bit the bullet and put Ana in a short 6 week swim lesson session at our YMCA. And, although she missed 2 out of 6 lessons, she has turned into a fish. Look at her swimming all by herself. I never dreamed they actually taught kids HOW TO SWIM in these lessons- go figure!

Watch fast b.c it's REAL SHORT (technical difficulties- AKA daddy's behind the camera)

Charleston, SC

Last week, my parents drove down from WI and took our family on a weekend getaway to Charleston, SC. It was a great weekend and the city is amazing. The only complaint any of us have is that we didn't have near long enough to enjoy the countless historical and scenic attractions. This truly is a great city.


Original homes- 1700's


Cobblestone brought over from Britain pre-revoluation


Original building exemplifying the disk earthquake repairs (see side of buildings). These disks were used with rods to pull buildings back together again after the earth quake of ???? (I don't remember, but it was a LONG time ago), b.c the city was too poor to tear down and rebuild. Obviously they worked!


AND... the girls past the traveling test. They did WONDERFUL. Slept like champs and were troopers through all the "site seeing"

A CASTLE

Our hotel is one of the orignal buildings in Charleston and it looked a lot like a Castle, which is what Ana referred to it as all weekend.
But of course, what else for our 2 princesses

Checking Out the Sites of Charleston, SC

Ana's big plan: both girls should wear their new sunglassed on their heads. Taylor did better at this than the plan maker herself

Check out the new side by side... Thank you Nani & Gagi. These 2 musketeers are hilarious sitting next 2 each other. Taylor thinks she has died and gone to heaven and Ana is learning the skills of self control..... quicker than she prefers :)

Charleston Girls

Horse and Carraige City Historical Tour

Taylor had to sit this one out. It was on our first night, after the long drive, and she just needed her bed!!!!

Playing the the Fountains

Dolphin Spoting

We ate lunch at this great seaside restaurant (the only one in Charleston) and was surprised by a group of dolphins playing happily right in front of the pier we were eating on.

Hide and Go seek

Among Ana's list of favorite past times. She was in hide and go seek heaven in the hotel with Nani and Gagi playing with her.

The Girls 1st Sleepover

This was back in March on our last trip home.


I was a little reluctant, as always, to let them go of them ALL NIGHT.

BUT... pair 9 months of no sleep with trusted family that the girls ADORE, and it was easier than I thought.


Here is Ana playing with
her best bud cousin, Maia


And Taylor at 3:00 AM...
PARTY GIRL

Nashville, TN- Music City

Our supposed new home to be..... don't change your address books yet, as nothing is ever firm until the moving trucks are in our driveway, but eventually we'll be in Nashville. Sooner than later I'm afriad (we're being told late summer)

So, a few weekends ago we decided to take a quick road trip to check out the music city for ourselves. It turned out to be quite an eventful day...
(1) Taylor gets car sick- let's just say she is now forward facing..forget 12 mo.
(2) It was SNOWING. YES. SNOWING that's right
(3) We had no plan, no map and no directions... GHETTO HERE WE COME

But... we did find a nice park outside Vanderbilt Univ (my hopeful new PhD home)- Centennial Park. The girls had fun despite the odds of the day.


Ana exploring the train exhibit at Centennial Park


Poor sick Taylor, enjoying a nice push from her sister through the park


Ana and Mommy bird watching along the River in Centennial park- downtown Nashville.