a little pre-bedtime dance

eleanore and claire love to bust a move. when they hear music that is upbeat they instantly shoot a hand up and move it up and down. they shake their bodies a bit, but the best part is the arm. when putting them to sleep we do a little youtube video of “scrat from ice age” or “maximus from tangled” and they almost always answer with the same response (which I can’t believe – and they do change their opinions each day). the best part about the scrat video clip is that at the end of it there is a little dance music that plays. claire always shoots her hand up and rocks it. lately, ellie has been joining her. it is so precious.

bill was home tonight so I decided to snap some pictures of the scene so I can cement it in my brain. e&c are growing so quickly and when I hold charlie I realize how quickly they will be too big for me to cuddle them and have them arm dance.

video starting.

this is right before the music starts. claire prepares by putting her arm up in the air. then once it starts she jukes and jives it. ellie wasn’t feeling it tonight, but that is probably because she had already arm danced during dinner.

 

whoever is putting them down reads some books and then they pray. here the girls are showing how they fold their hands. love this.

happy

becca was over the other day with nolan for some relaxing friend and littlest tinest baby time while my kids were napping. it was wonderful. we were relaxed, nolan slept, ate, hung out. THEN – my kids got up from nap. while I love being with them they definitely add a level of craziness (probably an understatement). they are also OBESSED with Nolan. a dangerous combination.

becca snapped these pictures of what my life would look like if I had a little 5 week old right now. lets just say I am HAPPY right where I am right now.

this looks like a lot to handle.

save the baby!

phew! he made it safely into his mother’s arms!

then baby nolan went home for dinner and bed and we returned to our “normal”. these two goofers were copying each other as they sipped their water post nap.

 

oh and c was still in his underwears. classic.

happy.

baby sprinkle and babies galore

last tuesday my friends threw a baby “sprinkle” for nicole & baby evelyn and julia and baby boy #2. we had a great morning and I can’t wait until these sweet babies arrive in a couple of weeks.

julia and becca with nolan.

nicole and beth.

kamber and her daughter mckinley.

beth holding nolan and kerri holding claire.

bubba was such a champ. she transformed into the true bubbasitter and hung out downstairs with a bunch of the kids. it made our morning! we were actually able to hang out and chat!

Nolan and McKinley two of the latest additions.

 

the spread. so many delicious dishes.

nicole, leslie, kerri.

the chaos. notice how claire is climbing up the chair.

my sweet claire.

the group. becca, kamber & mckinley, julia, beth and nolan, nicole, kerri and claire, and me. wow!

between us we have 12 kids. soon to be 14!

I love this picture with her two girls – annie and claire.

after the party wrapped up laura and the kids got to meet nolan for the first time.

laura and nolan.

in her happy place.

claire meeting nolan for the first time. meeting “baby no no” (what the girls call him) really flipped a BABY switch with eleanore and claire. they are now obsessed with their baby dolls and most of all REAL babies.

we were trying to focus her on nolan’s feet.

she is so gentle.

claire really wanted to HOLD (they put their hands out and say “ho ho” over and over until you get it) baby nolan. once ellie saw that she jumped in and started in on touching baby nolan.

becca and nolan were calm throughout the chaos. thankfully he kept sleeping through many pats, kisses, moves, etc.

  

laura rescued baby nolan from the girls.

they quickly found their way back next to him.

trying anything to get to baby no no.

then it was charlie’s turn. he was SO excited to hold Nolan.

 

charlie is so sweet with little babies. he adores Nolan.

here charlie is saying “hey addison! look – I’m holding Nolan”. he was so proud of himself.

how precious is this?!??!? love those two little boys.

just get the girl an iphone!

who am I talking about? why miss eleanore of course. that girl has a serious obsession with iphones (and other REAL phones). when we were in montana ellie disappeared for a bit and I couldn’t find her. I walked around the house and then decided to check in our bedroom to see if she had snuck in there. I didn’t see her in the main room, but noticed the closet door was closed (where the girls’ pack n plays were). I opened it and found ellie playing with bill’s iphone. she instantly handed it over because she knows she is not supposed to play with our phones. I was laughing so hard after catching her and am still laughing now as I write this because it was the cutest thing to see a little 22 lb ellie sneaking into the closet with bill’s phone. I sure hope this doesn’t foreshadow how many hours she will spend on her phone as a teenager.

then last night when putting ellie to bed she insisted she sleep with an old blackberry that we have now. I went back in later to check on her and found her with it clutched in her hand. all she has ever wanted was a phone.

so – should she get her own iphone for her 2nd birthday? just kidding.

neh no and mee mah

claire is such a fun loving girl. when she hears music (or even any bass sound) she starts dancing with her arms and legs. when she was skiing she liked to dance with her hands while skiing down the hill. love her zest for life!

she is up for trying anything. she is very sensitive to discipline – unlike her sister. so when the eleanore or claire are doing something they shouldn’t be doing (ie: throwing food off their tray or spitting food – their new favorite thing) and I ask them to stop and explain the consequences claire almost always starts to behave. then usually ellie tries to test out the boundaries and claire spends the whole time saying “mom! neh no! neh no!” to alert me to ellie’s disobedient ways. she will also say “mom!” to get my attention and then say “eyee” or point to anything she thinks I should be alerted too. now – she is not always perfect. this is only when she is interested in obeying the rules. many times she is the one climbing up something she shouldn’t or something else.

another sweet thing claire does is when we are done saying prayers she always says “mee mah” for amen.  I love the confidence that she says it with.

we love this goofer! claire – you bring such joy to our lives!