Sleeping Beauties

Sophie sometimes falls asleep in the car, but it is rare for both kids to fall asleep.

Now time to wake them up...

Lydia's turn...

Sunshine for Sophie

After several days of rain and thunderstorms, the sun finally came out (and stayed out) just in time for Sophie's first birthday party. Though slightly chilly, I could not have asked for better weather; it truly was a gorgeous day with not a cloud in the sky! My parents come into town Friday night and lent helping hands with cooking and watching the kids. We had about 50 people over, so it was a bit crowded, but overall I'd like to think the party was a success. I spent the entire week slowly cleaning the house (hence, no posts) and was a bit overwhelmed at times, but it was truly worth it!
Mommy and the birthday girl

Sophie blowing out her "1" candle with help from Mommy, Daddy, and LydiaSophie "digging" into her first cake


Big sister Lydia still eating cake after all the guests have leftOpening gifts (or the lack thereof) after the bash

Laughter is the best medicine

I love watching the girls play together, it just lifts my spirits!

Sophie makes this gesture when she is really excited about something, like pulling out baby wipes from the container. :P

And she's off...

In preparation for her first birthday, Sophie has decided to officially start walking. She actually enjoys it quite a bit, laughing and babbling as she wobbles along. If Sophie weren't waving the shoe in her hand, she would have had both arms straight out, all zombie-like.

Now if we could only get those little teeth to start growing...she is FINALLY cutting her third tooth. I felt the tooth coming in today and it's not located directly above the current two lower teeth, but to the side. Sophie will be sporting a jack o' lantern smile very soon.

Season eight

Now that Sophie is sleeping at 8 PM, which has helped her wake up later around 7:30 AM, I have to get her ready for bed during Dancing with the Stars on the Monday performance nights. So during commercials, I rush to get her bathed and rush out to catch the next dance. Trung caught us in-between my bathing and clothing Sophie; apparently she likes watching the show too!

My current favorites are Shawn and Giles, and yes, I did happen to watch the "Sex in the City" movie. :P Melissa is quite good as well, but the dances seem just too easy for her...I dunno. So, what's up with all the amateur "professional" dancers like Dimitry and Chelsea? And I thought Julianne wasn't going to be dancing this season so that she could focus on her singing career?

Replacement

Sophie's hippo walker has been replaced with a big sister.

Life is beautiful

I was debating whether or not to even blog about this, but I figured others might learn for my experience, so here goes... Last week I took both girls to the outlet to make a quick return. Sophie was strapped onto me and Lydia was holding my hand as we walked in the parking lot back to the minivan. I usually put Lydia in the car first, but poor Sophie's head leans so far back as I hoist Lydia into her seat that I decided to put Sophie in first. As I was unstrapping Sophie out of the carrier with Lydia supposedly at my side, I saw and heard an eighteen wheeler braking. I quickly turned to my side and realized that Lydia was missing...I panicked! I was screaming out her name, but didn't hear anything. I ran to the other side of the car, and there she was, patiently waiting at the door to be let in. My eyes are swelling up with tears as I type this just thinking about the whole thing. I don't know what I would have done if something would have happened to our Lydia,

our little helper.

So, now I know to just put Lydia into the car first, regardless of the situation and how good she is behaving. Kids are kids and they don't know any better...Lydia thought she was being good by going to her side of the car. Please don't think me a bad mother as I too am learning everyday.

Falling and walking

Lydia can be a bully at times, but really does love playing with Sophie.

Sophie's first steps...though you can't really tell from the angle. I'll post a better clip soon!

As good as it gets

Yesterday I had a lot on my mind and was beginning to stress out, so I was looking forward to a relaxing weekend. I had a productive morning doing some on-line shopping at Gymboree (of course), making banana chocolate chip cupcakes and tuna salad, and printing out shipping labels. Then off to pick up Susanna and Ethan for some late morning fun at Zilker Park.
Lydia and Ethan enjoyed swinging first...

while Sophie kept an eye out on our picnic food.

My big girl!We found a little friend while looking for a spot to picnic,though Lydia couldn't seem to find him.

After a scrumptious lunch of tuna salad sandwiches, pigs in the blanket, chips, potato salad, fruit, and cupcakes, we headed back home for the kids' naps. Trung got to leave work early today, so the girls weren't up for long when he came home. We spent the rest of the afternoon outside enjoying the nice cool weather.

Sophie had a blast in her walker (which I only try to use when we are outside since I've always heard it discourages walking)


Lydia rode in her various vehicles, but found it most fun pushing the baby around.

After the kids went down for the night, we had a couple friends come over to play the board game The Settlers of Catan, which was long, but quite fun. I honestly can't remember the last game I've played! Despite having a hard time getting Lydia to take a nap, overall, I had a fabulous day! :)

Endless Cycle

I can only remember a few days since Thanksgiving when both the girls and I were not ill. The cycle always begins with Lydia, probably catching something at Mother's Day Out, who then gives it to Sophie, who then gives it to me. Fortunately, the girls heal pretty quickly, but I'm stuck with a cough and/or runny nose for weeks. Right now we are on our third cycle and Trung was added to the mix. He has headaches and sore throats, while Sophie has a runny nose. I am just counting the days when I'll catch something again, but hopefully I won't! I was considering putting Sophie in Mother's Day Out too starting in September, but am having second thoughts. Well, at least all this illness is preparing me for when the kids start school because I heard that it only gets worse. :/

Sophie's first haircut

Dave and Joy brought Parker over yesterday for a play date; Lydia just loves playing with that boy! :) Dave and I were talking about haircuts and somehow the conversation led to me asking if he would do the honors of giving Sophie her first haircut. As you can see, Sophie had some mad bangs; they usually aren't that noticeable since I always have them pulled back with a bow.
Work in progress...



Dave and his little masterpiece.Sophie's hair was a bit shorter than expected, but as Dave said, it will grow back. :) Thanks for making Sophie's world a less hairy place, Dave!