The Party

Dad took all the kids to the park while Aunt Tiffany and I finished getting ready for the big party. I am not sure Allison cared, but the boys were very concerned that we had a proper party with cake, ice cream, and presents. We started with one of Allie's favorite dinners - pasta, of course. I must also point out that her expression in the above photo is what you get when you ask Allie to smile. She squints so hard you cannot see her eyes. Funny girl!

After dinner we moved on to presents. We made the mistake of having the presents in sight during dinner, and needless to say, Allie did not eat much of her dinner. She kept pointing and saying, "presents, presents, presents...." Make sure to click on the photos and really look at her expressions. She was so excited about EVERY gift.

Every time she opened a gift, she had to try it out, or on, as the case may be.

Putting her birthday money from Tiff (or as Allie calls her Ti-ti) in her shiny new piggy bank from Grammie. Yes this piggy has a tiara and tutu.

New pj's! Allie was VERY jealous a few nights ago when she saw her friend Elizabeth in a nightgown. All she wants to wear lately are dresses and skirts, and of course, all her pj's were pants and shorts.

Yes, she is squatting to quickly take off her clothes so she can try on her new pj's.

Matching nightgown for her baby doll. She was thrilled!

Checking out her new slippers.

Yeah! More clothes and shoes from Grand Ma & Pa Jones to try on!

DJ just had to try something on as well. Yes Uncle Don, he did this by himself!

Allie spent the rest of the evening walking around in her nightgown carrying the gift bags that she had filled up with toys, clothes and shoes. She even said "shopping" several times. I think we should be nervous.

Unfortunately, we did not get a still shot of Allie blowing out her candles. I have a video clip I hope to post tomorrow. Check back, because Allison sings a beautiful version of Happy Birthday to herself.

Happy Birthday Allie Grace! We Love You!!!

XOXOXO

Happy Birthday Allison!

Happy Birthday Baby Girl! I cannot believe you are TWO!!

Allison started her birthday by having chocolate chip pancakes with her cousin DJ!

Chocolate is now one of many words in her vocabulary.

It was a packed Saturday, including a primary "birthday" party at church. How convenient! She thought the whole party was for her. We will celebrate her birthday at home on Sunday afternoon. She also thought the sacks for the sack race made an adorable outfit.

Allison has become quite a little girl lately. She always says "me pick" and "me dress" when it is time to get dressed. Yes, I gave in and let her pick her own birthday outfit, including a dress that is two sizes too small and crocs on a very cold day.

It was a good blender . . .

Our fabulous Kitchen Aid blender died this morning while I was making my morning shake. I was just about finished when a horrible noise made me think something (like a spoon) had fallen into the blender. This is what I found. It lasted a good seven years! We are currently searching for a replacement. Anyone have a favorite? The Vita-mix and Blendtec are the current contenders.

SPRING has Sprung!!

Welcome to New England SPRING!!!!

Man has it ever been a busy winter! It seems like our last blog post about the snow was just a few weeks ago...now poooof it's spring! The kids have grown a ton and are so happy to be able to go outside and play. There's so much to catch our blog-o-sphere up on...we'll add them as we get a chance. Right now we're just super excited about really discovering New England this spring and summer!

We hope that you all are doing just fabulous!!

My New Favorite Boots

The East Coast has again surprised us. A rain storm over the weekend, and our basement had water FLOWING IN from several locations for the entire next week. Yes, the rain stopped on Sunday night, but the water kept flowing in until Friday. And of course, since we are renting this house, and just moved, we did not have a sump pump. Keir and I spent the first 48 hours taking turns pushing and sweeping the water to keep it from getting our stuff wet. A co-worker of Keir's who happened to be one of the lucky ones with a dry basement brought us his pump, because of course there was not a store within hours that had any pumps left. Keir checked. Even the display models were sold. I wore my boots all week - to do laundry, to go to my desk, to check the pump, to sweep the water to the pump, to get various things from the basement - and all while it was dry and sunny outside. Allison didn't miss a chance to put on her boots and help out. She loved it!

Cayden was also a big helper. Hopefully, this was a rare event and we will not have to do this every time it rains. However, I have learned that most people here just accept that their basements will have a little water, a little humidity, and will always be a little damp. Yuck!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

The kids helped decide what to eat, and of course they wanted green eggs and ham. (Our "ham" was really pork chops, and I added some zucchini for nutritional value - at least it was green, right?) The leprechauns turned our milk green! Not pictured, but the kids also made green sugar cookies after dinner.

Movie Night

I think one of our favorite things has quickly become dad's homemade popcorn and a movie at home.  Even better when we can share it with friends!