Some of my favorite things...

I decided that I wanted to start this list in hopes of remembering some of the cute things that the girls are doing and saying. It is almost too hard to recall it all, so here is what I can as of right now...

Some of Hayden's words and their meanings...
"Dirty Horse" this is what she calls a Paint horse
"Hanger" when driving along the road and she sees a construction crane
"Pia" and "Sarah" the names we have given the Fisher Price Little People
"Taka" the name they have given to Baby Sissy

Favorite Songs:
Without a doubt Wheels on the Bus! It may have even passed Itsy Bitsy Spider. We also sing a song in one of our classes about Monkeys and Alligators. So cute, video to follow.


Other favorites...
When we are driving around they both always ask to see cows and horses. My response
is typically, "Maybe, you have to keep your eyes open." So now when ever we are in the car and they say they want to see a horse or a cow one of the girls (usually Hayden) says "Have to keep your eyes open."

Jonas' favorite Hayden phrase is the ever lasting "No Daaaaadddy." When he comes home from work they play soccer/keep away or have tickle wars and she always ends with a "No Daaaddddyyy." It is so cute.

The other day Taylor and I were getting her dressed and out of nowhere she said "I so cute." She doesn't even know the half of it!

When they are eating meals I usually pull up a chair to drink my tea or eat along side with them and they both look at me and almost in unison say "Well, hello there. What are you having for dinner?"

When either of them want help or want to be held they say "Help-e You" or "Momma Hold you." For a while Hayden was saying "Sit you" when she wanted to be held. So precious, these are the things I don't want to correct.

That is about all for now...I am sure there are tons more and I will try to add to them as I remember them!

Happy Halloween!!!

The month of October was a blast!

The girls really got into it this year with visits to the Pumpkin Patch with friends and again with family. They LOVED decorating the house for Halloween. Hayden walked out almost every day from her nap and said "Look at all the Halloween decorations!" They loved driving by houses with pumpkins and scarecrows in the front yard and of course got very excited for this thing called Trick or Treating.

So, when the big day arrived the girls were prepped and ready to go. They still didn't completely "get it" but they had their bags and knew that we were going to visit our neighbors. It did not take long for them to figure out that when they pushed the door bell and said trick or treat something would get deposited in their treat bag. We had our friend Catherine "The Frog" Drain with us and I think we hit about 12 houses. The girls were ready for more having fun (and getting a little nervous) when they saw people all dressed up. I think the parents were the ones who were ready to call it quits. Plus, we had to get back to our house so that we could answer the door for our trick or treaters.

I have to say, that was one of my most favorite parts of the whole thing. EVERY time the doorbell rang Hayden would perk up, open her mouth wide and say "Ohhh, who's that???" She would run to the door, help open it and proudly comment on all the costumes. We were very excited to see Cinderella visit us and some other witches. Mom loved the homemade Whoopee cushion. The neighborhood was full of kids and we ran out of candy at 8pm, thanks to Jonas letting a bunch of 12 year old boys "take as much as they want." But we had a blast and the girls fell asleep dreaming of tricks and treats! It just keeps getting better and better!!!

Here are some pictures of the fun we had during the month of October...hope you all had a great Halloween!!!

Create a Free Slideshow

Five Years Ago....

Today is a great day! October 2, 2004 was the day that Jonas and I were married. Can NOT believe it has been five years.

A dear friend of my mom's said that you must read the newspaper headlines on the day of your wedding, kind of like a wedding horoscope. I can still remember what was happening that day, the earth shook. Literally. Mt. St. Helen's erupted and that was the headline on the day we were married.

Safe to say that we have been shaking things up ever since. After an amazing weekend in Calistoga with family and friends we jetted off to Thailand for 6 weeks. One of the best vacations of my life, I can not wait to get back there someday. We bought a house 6 months later and have spent the last 3 years fixing it up. (We only have the garage door left!) On our first anniversary we got a dog, Remy, who is definitely our first born. Probably more spoiled than our human children! And on Sept 5, 2007 we welcomed our daughters, Hayden & Taylor, into this world. A few trips sprinkled in here and there with a lot of laughter and love.

I feel so lucky to have Jonas as my partner in this adventure. Especially as we prepare to welcome another little one into the world. Tomorrow we will head back up to Calistoga for the weekend while the girls get some time with Gogo. I am thinking we need to drive up to Friendship Trail and see if there is a wedding going on. :)

Happy Anniversary to us! Here's to many more years of shaking things up!

We made it through another year!!!

Today is September 9th, 2009 and I am so proud to say that I have two gorgeous, healthy and thriving TWO YEAR OLDS!!!! Not to mention an amazing husband and dog. We all made it through another wonderful year as a family.

Jonas and I have been thinking about how incredible this past year has been since the girls turned One. My Mom always said that her favorite time with us as kids was from one to two...now I know I have only been a mom for 2 years, but right now I could not agree more. One year ago, neither of my girls had teeth and now they have mouths full. Hayden was not walking and now she is running, jumping, spinning, climbing, skipping and dancing. Taylor worked very hard in physical therapy to now be walking, climbing and dancing, a lot. They both could say a couple of words and now they are singing songs, counting to 12, putting together 4 word sentences and amazing us every day with how they put concepts together. We still have not had any haircuts, so that is yet to come but they both have little curls at the back of their necks...priceless.

I think the most amazing part of the whole thing is watching their bond as sisters form. Last year they sort of new someone else was around but now they ask for one another all the time. When a stranger arrives in the house Taylor immediately starts asking for her sister to make sure she is okay. If Taylor is crying Hayden runs over and says "it's okay sissy" and begins to rub her back. They hold hands, they give each other kisses and dance together. I really feel that the blessing of having twins has started to SHINE in this last year. They have a bond that will never be broken and only gets stronger with each day. I feel so lucky to be able to witness this and be a part of it.

All that mushy stuff being said, we have had a wonderful month of August with some fun, relaxation and work all capped off by a wonderful 6 days up in Graeagle. We went up as a family to relax and have some time in the mountains. The minute we arrived on Wednesday the girls knew they were someplace special. We went for walks every morning, swims in the afternoon and had early morning snuggles on the deck. Honestly, I don't know what else I could ask for, amazing time with my husband, daughters and dog. Loved every minute of it.

We also had some friends come join us for the Labor Day portion of the weekend which made it super fun for the kids as well as the parents who got to stay up and hang out after the kiddos went to bed. It also made celebrating the girls 2nd birthday a blast. Lots of cupcakes, crepe paper, beach balls and good ole fun! Since we were out of town for the actual day, we will have a little celebration at home with all the family, they girls are looking forward to that. They could get used to this birthday stuff!

Lastly, and if you made it this far you will get the good stuff, we are super thrilled to announce that as of yesterday, I am 16 weeks pregnant. Yes, with just one. Yes, we are planning to find out what we are having and the baby is due on Feb 23rd. I am feeling great, napping when the girls napping and thinking a lot about what it will be like to have another little one running around. Oy Vey. All that being said, it has mostly made me appreciate this time with my girls. I am just cherishing every moment because come February they are going to have to learn how to share, again. It will be a crazy time, but we are so excited! As of right now, Hayden wants a baby brother and Taylor wants a baby sister. We shall see...

Here are some pictures from when we were up in the mountains.

Wait! Where did June go?

Seriously...where did it go???

Last I posted it was the middle of May and it feels like that was just a blink ago. So, here is a quick recap of the last month including some pictures...

We pretty much had birthday party after birthday party to celebrate at the end of May and during June. The girls loved wishing their friends Jack, Bella, Sophie and Catherine a Happy 1st Birthday. And we even got to celebrate with Avery, Alyssa and Lorenzo for their 2nd birthdays. But one of the best was definitely a weekend spent in Sacramento while Tia Amy was in town for her birthday. By the end of it Hayden could sing her version of Happy Birthday. It goes a little something like this...


That weekend we also had a lot of fun with Uncle Adam, Auntie Mel and Mia. We spent Sunday morning at the Sacramento Zoo followed by a yummy lunch at Burr's. The girls loved being at the zoo and still talk about riding the choo choo train with Mia.

During the month of June we also were able to spend some time up at Five Star with Grandma Abbie and Grandpa Mark. Hayden was able to drive the "tractor" and go for a horse back ride. She is a natural at the ranch, I think I know where we will be sending her during her summer vacations! As she was riding the horse she would say "Sissy turn." They Taylor would get on the horse, get scared and Hayden would get back on and go for another ride with Grandma Abbie. This happened about 4 times.

For Father's Day we started out the day with Grandpa Kenny. Brunch in Davis was great because we got to see Uncle Adam, Auntie Mel, Mia too. And it was a special treat for Grandpa Kenny to have 3 of his 5 great-grandchildren with him that day.

The month rounded out with me getting a weekend off! My first one since before I was pregnant...long overdue! I went down to Orange County for my annual high school girl's trip. It was amazing, fun, wonderful, exhausting and fabulous! Made me miss my babes, appreciate my husband and be so thankful for all that I have, friends and family!

Here are some pics from the month...


Uncle Ryan's Graduation from CSU Fresno!


Hayden on the choo choo train at the Sac Zoo


Taylor checking out the monkeys


Playing dress up with Great Grandma TJ's jewels and hats


Beating the heat, with Remy


Reading books with Grandma Pat


Having fun and giving lots of love to one another


We went to a local shop and made a t-shirt for Dad for Father's Day

News Flash...

This just in...Hayden has gone to the bathroom on the potty. TWICE!!!

I bought a kids potty today just to bring home and "introduce" it to her and not even think about actually potty training for a couple of months.

Before bath time she saw it and was very curious. So I asked her if she would like to sit on it, first she said "No!" and ran away. Then when I took off her diaper to get in the bath she went to go sit down on it. And low and behold she went! And was very proud. I thought it was luck but after bath time she asked to sit on the potty again. She sat down, thought about it for a minute and went again!

Granted she could run in the opposite direction tomorrow, but this is a good start!

The Easter Marathon...

No, we did not run a marathon but it felt like it! The weekend started off with a Easter Egg Hunt in Danville with friends from our playgroup. The weather was gorgeous and the hunt was fabulous. There was an egg toss, balloons, face painting, flower planting, food, snacks, fun and lots of friends. We had a great time.

The girls woke up on Sunday morning and the Easter Bunny had visited our house dropping off some treats, sidewalk chalk and a beach ball. (Balls are very high on the toy list these days). It was fun to see the girls get excited about opening the eggs, thank goodness the bunny knew to put raisins and graham crackers in there!

Soon after we packed up the crew and drove to Wilton for Easter Sunday with the family at Five Star. I think I was most excited because we were hoping to get the girls on horseback for the first time!! We had a great time with everyone with a gorgeous lunch outside and lots of play time with the dogs. They were actually jumping in the pool while the girls hunted for eggs. I think they thought that was more fun than the egg hunt! After all that we saddled up Buddy and Uncle Ryan took everyone for rides. It was awesome! I thought they both would shy away from the horse, but they loved it! I can't wait to see them up there again.

Here are some pictures from the fun weekend...

Where have my babies gone...

Today we had a neighborhood Easter Egg hunt and before we went down there the girls and I were playing around the house. All of the sudden, with both of them pushing a stroller, I realized that my girls are no longer babies. This has been happening a lot, but it really hit me today. Wow.




It is only a matter of time before I am recreating this picture...circa 1978...

Just some "lovey" updates...

Nothing new and major to report just some sweet stories about my little ladies...well at least I think they are sweet!

Last Wednesday was a landmark day for me as a Mom. The girls and I were playing around in the morning, I fall on the floor and they scream and pile on top of me. You get the picture. Well were were doing that and all of the sudden Hayden comes over falls on me, hugs me and says "I love you mommy." I on my honor, pinkie swear it was unsolicited and it MADE MY DAY! She has not said it since, but I will take it!

Most evenings the girls eat dinner around 5pm. So on the nights when Jonas can't get home before they go to sleep he calls around dinner time to talk to them and say goodnight. I put the phone on speaker and they attempt to say things like "Dada office" and "Hi Dada" with full mouths. Well yesterday, Jonas called and I was trying to prompt the girls to say "I love you" before he hung up and Taylor said it! The first time and it was so cute because she got a little smile afterwards. Adorable.

I guess it is easy to say that there is a lot of "love" in our house! Hayden is always trying to give Taylor hugs and loves. Taylor is not sure if she should push her or hug back. It is pretty cute. Here is a quick video of one of the first times Hayden gave her sister a "love."

Some live action...

These were too cute. We had to share them. Hayden is such a little talker and obviously loves to be on camera. Taylor on the other hand, ist just trying to survive with her sister around!

Where did winter go?

Jonas just turned to me and asked "have you given up on your blog that you started?" I actually had to wonder what he was talking about...but then I remembered that the last time I had posted anything was in January. Winter is almost over and no updates. I guess with Hayden walking, climbing, jumping and running while Taylor tries to keep up it all got away from me.

So here is the quick update...January literally feels like we blinked and it was over. They girls and I returned to our Music class and it is probably the highlight of our week. They LOVE it. Hayden runs around the house singing the songs and constantly asking for "music." The minute a song plays Taylor starts rocking back and forth while looking for something to bang like a drum. It is fabulous for them and I have fun too.

February started with a fiesta at our house for the Super Bowl. We had some friends over and played while the guys watched the game. It was pretty fun until bath time arrived and it got crazy! Hayden & Taylor were taking their bath and Catherine asked if she could join them (she is 8 months old). Then Jack decided that he was not going to miss out on the chance to be in a tub with 3 girls and stripped down and got right in, he is 9 months old. It was pretty cute and we are pretty certain that they will hate us later for the pictures we took. But I have a feeling there will be many more opportunities for them to rub a dub dub.

We also ventured up the windy road to the top of Mt Diablo on Valentine's Day to attempt at playing in the snow. The girls were properly bundled and Remy was ready to play. Jonas and I on the other hand had not dressed appropriately. Nonetheless we parked our car and started hiking up the road to the summit. Less than half way to the top a huge gust of wind came at us and we turned around and went back. It was so cold. Remy got to play in the snow for a bit and we made a nice morning out of it by stopping a little further down the mountain for some exploration. And we topped off our Valentine's Day by spending the evening with some of our favorite Valentine's, the Drain's and Matt Malone.

All in all, the girls are doing really well. Like I mentioned above Hayden is pretty much all over the place. She repeats words almost exactly and is starting to sing the ABC's. But Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is still her favorite. The other day I looked over and she had on a tutu and was spinning in circles with her hands in the air singing. :) She also has developed a fascination for glasses, headbands and scarves. I think we know who is going to want to play dress up all the time. It is pretty cute, she puts something on and immediately says "babies, babies" which means she wants to go look at herself in the mirror.

Taylor is working hard to catch up with her sister. She is still taking one or two steps but will only walk if holding someones hand. She is just a love and wants to cuddle and be held. But I also love it when the room goes quiet and I look over and she is reading books and talking about them out loud. Her current love is Remy. He will be laying on the couch and she just starts calling out his name and moves over closer to him while laughing and giggling. It sounds like "Neny" when she says his name. And she finally cut her third tooth on the top of her mouth. Not that she needs them though, she eats everything in sight.

We are looking forward to a fun March with a trip up to Healdsburg/Forestville for some wine tasting with friends (and no kids!). And Jonas' birthday is not too far after that. The rain is great, but I would be lying if I didn't say that I can't wait for Spring so we can spend more time outside!

Here are some photos...

Taylor playing with Jack & Catherine


Hayden with Jess and her new heart shades!


Jonas & Taylor giving Remy some water


The girls and I on Mt. Diablo<


The first of many fashion shows

Hello New Year!

2008 has come to a close and we could not be feeling more lucky and happy. We made it through 2009 with a couple bumps and bruises, a couple visits to the doctor, lots of fun with friends & family and loads of laughter and smiles.

Some of my favorite memories of 2008...the girls 1st birthday, a family visit to the Cal Academy of Sciences, 4th of July with the Turpens in Tahoe, the first time the girls made each other laugh, seeing them hold hands in the stroller, playing the "who can say WOW the loudest" game and getting them to sleep through the night back in January. Honestly, that feels like 5 years ago not 12 months ago. It really is amazing when I think about how much they have accomplished in the last year.

To cap off the year we had a great visit to Sacramento for Cousin Mia's 1st birthday party. The girls loved playing with all the other kids there as well as seeing cousin Mia eat her cake!

Christmas was spent at home with visits and fabulous meals with family. Santa stopped by our house on Christmas and the girls were excited as they walked out and saw a bunch of new toys by the tree. Opening presents was fun too, although they didn't like the tape. Note to self: not as much tape next year. Some of the favorite gifts are the new kitchen, the shopping cash register and the purse dogs. Yes, my daughters are going the way of Paris Hilton and they each have a little purse dog. They are actually quite cute and Hayden cuddles hers, it is pretty cute. Luckily, Remy is not jealous.

We rang in the New Year with lots of friends over at the Hoversen's house. The girls were very good to us and went to sleep early so we could play games, have some adult beverages and ring in 2009!

We wish everyone a very happy and healthy new year! With amazing friends & family we know it can only get better!