Heltz Family

San Antonio Part III

2011-07-19T19:28:00.000-07:00

Sunday we went to Sea World. The last time I was there it was a fun place with cool animals, now it is a huge theme park with rides, multiple water parks and still really cool animals. The girls had a great time and I had a blast! The first thing we did was feed the dolphins. It was amazing, to touch these beautiful animals was too cool. The girls wanted to try but after the dolphins opened their mouths and showed thier many teeth it was a little too intimidating.

Everyone was pretty cool before the dolphin opened its mouth

Then Caroline freaked out

Alyssa Kate gave it a whirl

The little guys loved the fish

Excited about Shamu coming out

Gorgeous

Taking a peek at us

Dual coolness

Alyssa Kate's favorite part was what she called the "posing"

Really great climbing structure with tunnels and slides. The girls loved it, the only bad part was that I lost sight of them for a bit and slightly freaked.

There is a cool show called Azul which had dolphins, a beluga whale, water dancers and divers. It is a great show with lots of unexpected twists and turns.

We drove the full trip from San Antonio to Little Rock on Monday. Even with stops it only took us 10 hours. The girls did wonderfully and thanks to the DVD player and the fun coloring books Mimi put together for them, it was very smooth.

I love this picture, she looks so sweet asleep :)

San Antonio Part II

2011-07-19T19:07:00.000-07:00

Saturday we celebrated my Great Uncle Jim's 90th birthday party. It was a great time reconnecting with my dads extended family. My grandfather (dad's father) died when he was 13 and his uncle Jim stepped in and helped his mom take care of business and transition into single motherhood.

This is the view from our hotel room...it was such a nice place

Uncle Jim (birthday boy), Aunt Jeanne (my grandmothers sister), who have been married for 67 years and my dad and his sister Marilyn.

Aunt Jeanne sneaking cookies

Alyssa Kate and Caroline eating with their second cousins, once removed.

My girls helping Uncle Jim take off his candles

Uncle Jim and Aunt Jeanne with their four kids (Spark, Craig, Cathy and John) and my dad and Aunt Marilyn

My parents, Jim, Jeanne and the girls

San Antonio

2011-07-16T11:24:00.000-07:00

The girls and I traveled to San Antonio with my parents this weekend. My dad's uncle is celebrating his 90th birthday, so they are having a family reunion to celebrate with him. We split our trip into two days coming which made the 11 hours very tolerable. On Monday when we go home we are doing it all in one day...pray for us :). This is some of the pics from our first few adventures. We are having the birthday party this afternoon, then going to Sea World tomorrow.

Caroline likes talking to her computer

Thank goodness for the DVD player

On the Riverwalk, it was 107*

The view from our hotel is awesome

We took the girls to the Children's Museum this morning, it was lots of fun and air conditioned...big plus in San Antonio

Excavating artifacts

Really cool tree house

We walked down to the Alamo after the museum and it was over 100* at that point, as evidence by the not smiling faces

Soccer Fun

2011-04-03T20:17:00.001-07:00

Alyssa Kate played her first soccer game Saturday. It was a beautiful day and soooo much fun. She loves soccer and did such a good job. I think my shy girl could become a soccer nut :)

Caroline scoped out a good seat :)

Running through the tunnel while they announced her name

From the moment game started she stayed right with the ball. She would just run the other team out bounds when they had the ball

She was a little excited :)

Studying the game during a substitution

Kicking the ball in

She got to see Noah and Sara who also had games that day

There is one more new post below this.....

Dunk in the tub

2011-04-03T19:37:00.001-07:00

Tonight I was privileged to see my Aunt Donna baptized into the family of God! It was so wonderful and emotional. She is such a wonderful woman with a huge heart. Alyssa Kate and I were up in the baptismal area with her so I could take some pictures. I loved that Alyssa Kate could be there to witness this sacred event. She has seen others baptized and we have spoken to her about it but I know that it is much more meaningful because it was someone who she loves and can relate to. So, tonight before bed we were doing our family prayer time and it always starts with Wes and ends with Caroline. Well, Wes and I both praised God for Donna's baptism and God allowing us to have a personal relationship with Him. Then it was Alyssa Kate's turn and she said "thank you God for seeing Aunt Donna at church in the tub". It was so difficult to keep from laughing out loud :)

Wye Mountain

2011-03-20T21:14:00.001-07:00

Thursday we went to Wye Mountain with our friends the Kamps. It was such a nice, warm, breezy day! The kids had a blast and Sara and I enjoyed watching them run through the daffodils. Sara and I are both entering into our first official year of homeschooling our oldest for Kindergarten in the Fall. The decision to teach Alyssa Kate at home has not been without its challenges but having such a sweet friend to bounce ideas off of and receive encouragement from has been great. It will be hard but an adventure and I am glad that we all have buddies to walk through it with!

The kids could not wait until the could rush the flowers

Alyssa Kate's favorite part of Wye Mtn.- running :)

How old are you?

Caroline's "gotcha" face

Gorgeous girls

The crew: Caroline(2) holding Lily(3 months), Noah(5), Eden(2) and Alyssa Kate(5)

Sweet Buddies!

The great race

Love that girl!

5 Already?

2011-02-03T18:04:00.000-08:00

My first baby is 5!!!! Actually she was 5 last Thursday but with the pace life is moving the last few weeks it is amazing this is only week late. Alyssa Kate Heltz was born at 2:49 am after about 8 hours of labor. My water broke at home while we were putting the crib together, I thought I peed on myself at first but she was just ready to play. After my epidural I slept through most of my labor and when the nurse woke me up and told me it was time to push I was slightly confused. After three full pushes she came into the world howling. She was a tiny thing that the nurse actually rounded up to get her weight at 6lbs 1 oz. She is such an amazing gift from God. We tried for a couple years to have a child and had a miscarriage five months before we got pregnant with Alyssa Kate. While choosing a name for her I loved the name Kate but did not want her name to be just "Kate" without something it was short for as her official first name. So we choice Alyssa which is my middle name. I love that we are connected in that way.
Now that she is 5 I can not believe how fast the time has past. She is totally the guinea pig, the poor child. She started with two very green parents and it is amazing how wonderful she has turned out :). She is such a smart, sweet girl who takes my breath away at times with how completely amazing she is. God surprises me daily with how much this little girl can challenge me and show me His love at the same time.
Alyssa Kate loves to be read to and is improving in sounding out words by herself. She loves to pretend to cook, clean and take care of babies. She adores her little sister and likes to help with everything! She is a pleaser who doesn't push too many boundaries but will speak her mind when it is important to her. She has her daddy's eyes and my attitude. She loves to snuggle and be close and would rather fall asleep wrapped up in her daddy's arms than anywhere else.

3 days old precious gift

1 year old cutie pie

2 year old fairy

3 year old princess

4 year old sweetheart

5 year old beauty

36 Years Combined

2011-01-24T19:07:00.000-08:00

Saturday, my mom and Alisa threw Alyssa Kate and I a birthday party. Alyssa Kate will be five on the 27th and I was 31 on the 22nd. Alisa did such a great job decorating for the Ice Cream Parlor party. She made all the cute signs and the very professional looking cake. My mom provided all the yummy goodies for ice cream and snacks. These two ladies can really throw a party. We had such a good time, all the kids played and the adults visited....a perfect afternoon.

The pictures on the right are me when I was five and the left was AK now.

My talented friend Kim made the cute puffs.

Isn't Alisa talented :)

Everything you could need to make a yummy sundae

The birthday girls

Looks good

Caroline's turn whacking the pinata

All decked out :)

The Arctic Tundra

2011-01-21T19:02:00.000-08:00

We went to Minnesota this week to visit some family and let the girls play in large amounts of snow. We had an amazing time and are so glad we went. What we didn't know when we went was that we were visiting on the coldest week of the year...actually the coldest week in years :) The warmest day was the first one we were there at a balmy 7 degrees for a high. This was our first time flying with the girls and it went great. The large amounts of snacks and activities in their backpacks helped make it seamless. The amount of snow that was on the ground was crazy to me, I actually looked out the window before we were landing and thought we were still high in the clouds but we were near the completely white ground.

Our first day in Minnesota we went sledding. Both girls loved it. Here is my cousin Danielle with her son Wesley and Alyssa Kate

Caroline shocked us all and loved flying down the hill on her reindeer sled. When she would reach the bottom she would say "I do that again".

Wes getting some air :)

Wesley and Alyssa Kate flying down the hill.

Mommy's snow beauty

The kids standing in front of the neighbors mailbox covered with snow....it was crazy!

Lego Land at the Mall of America...the Woody made of Lego's was very impressive

My Aunt Donna (my mom's little sister)

The big kids waiting to go on a ride at Nickelodeon Universe in the MOA.

This is the big roller coaster, it was so cool to have an entire amusement park indoors and the kids loved it.

Caroline sat on two rides but refused to actually ride them and got off.

I thought Caroline looked like an Umpa-Loompa(sp?) in her snow gear

On the other side of the fence is the Mississippi River...it was a trip for me to see it covered in snow and ice!

We visited the aquarium at the Mall of America... the kids loved it.

My cousin Jessica with Caroline at the aquarium

The Family: (L-R)- Danielle, Wesley, Travis, Caroline, Big Wesley, Alyssa Kate, me, Aunt Donna, Kate, Jessica and Mark

I took this picture this morning. It was a phenomenon I have never heard of. It was -20 degrees this morning and I walked outside and it looked like a glittering snow globe. Apparently when it is that wildly cold any moisture in the air freezes...the air was frozen :)

Another freaky trick in the cold....when it is over 15 degrees below zero you can throw a boiling cup of water into the air and it will immediately freeze into snow....you can see the steam coming from the cup

This one you can see the first bit of water hitting the air at the end of his hand turning to snow

Most the water is out now...cool right? :)

When it is that cold you have to find something fun to do :)

Our trip home...Alyssa Kate is looking at Minnesota covered in snow

Caroline was not impressed :)

3 of my Pillars

2010-12-16T11:56:00.000-08:00

I have alwaya thought the biblical stories of Jesus time on earth were fascinating. I believe that He was truly Holy and God on earth, and that he was also 100% human at the same time. I know that Jesus selected His 12 disciples to further His kingdom and take His message to the people of the world especially after His death. I also believe they were his friends. God made humans very relational, intimate people. Since He was human he would have desired this closeness. All of this to say that I like the idea that God gave His son friends to help through a very difficult two years.

This week has been really rough and is one of those I wish I wouldn't have had to go through. During this time though there have been 3 people who are my closest friends and parts of my heart that have help carry me through. God provided them to me as a precious gift and I could not have made it in one piece without God and the three of them.

My husband is my strongest pillar. We have always said that we are example of Gods humor because we are both very Type A personalities, who are never wrong...just ask us :) But he is such a giving, loving man. During some of my lowest times he shines with support and love. He made me cupcakes one night this week because he knows that they are my favorite. It was his first cupcake baking experience and even though, as he put it, "they were the ugliest cupcakes ever", they were very yummy. He is an amazing father and provider. I would not be as good of a mother and person without him in my life.

My mother is the wind beneath my wings. She has always believed in me and all that I could do. We have always been a cross between Gilmore Girls and Terms of Endearment, with a little Beaches mixed in. :) While I might look like my daddy, it is mother that I am the most like. She has been my example of a great homemaker, mother and friend. She gives to everyone at the expense of herself. Her heart for those that suffer and are in need of help is an amazing example. It is funny to me that even at 30 years old my mommy holding me can make me feel so much better.

My best friend Alisa is the one who can show up with the perfect, unexpected item during a bad time. She has seen me at worst and still loves and supports me. She has always listened to my heart and helps me wade through some confusing times. She won't let me put myself down and will always have the perfect encouraging words or thought provoking questions. She makes any event fun and I can say one word and she knows exactly what funny experience I am referring to.

God had provided me with many wonderful people in my life but these three are pretty incredible.

The really "Lost" Tooth

2010-12-13T18:54:00.000-08:00

We noticed one of Alyssa Kate's bottom teeth were loose a few months ago and we were actually worried. We took her to the dentist who reassured us that even a 4 year old can loose their teeth to make room for their big ones. This Friday night we knew it would be only a matter of time. The funny part to me about it is that I work weekends and Wes has the girls and he is totally grossed out by the whole loosing a tooth thing. Well, Sunday after church they headed to my parents for lunch and after spaghetti, bread and cake balls Aunt Ashley noticed the tooth was gone. She had swallowed it. I actually swallowed my first tooth when I was little eating a peanut butter sandwich. She was worried about not having a tooth for the tooth fairy so when I got home from work she wrote a letter to the tooth fairy that said "Dear tooth fairy, I ate my tooth, Thank you, Alyssa Kate" :) She put it under her pillow and this morning woke up to $3. That amount was not Mrs. Tooth fairy's idea, she thought the 25cents she got as a kid was good but Mr. Tooth fairy said with inflation she should get more. She took her money to the Dollar Store and bought herself a paddle ball and coloring book and with a twist of sweetness she also got Caroline a coloring book. I told her because she was being so sweet I would pay her tax that was over the $3. It ended up being 23 cents and she got to keep the 2 cents to put in her piggy bank...a good day all around. I can't believe my first baby has lost a tooth where has all the time gone????

Shutterfly great Holiday Cards

2010-11-24T20:04:00.000-08:00

Shutterfly is offering new, fantastic Holiday Cards for 2010. They are adorable and there are so many different styles that you will have no trouble finding a perfect fit for you and your family. This past Mother's Day I created cards for all of the wonderful women in our lives and they turned our fabulously! Our families raved about the great collages of our beautiful daughters. Every Christmas since we had Alyssa Kate we sent pictures in our Christmas cards. This year we have great family pictures to send taken by a good friend. I can't wait to create adorable cards of our little family.

Here are few of my favorites that Shutterfly is offering this year:

One of my favorite things about the cards that the offer is that you can create cards that have as many as 7 pictures in them. I have a hard time choosing between the all the cute pictures of my girls and this allows me to share so many of them. While my favorite cards are the folding variety I found this one and thought it was too adorable with the Christmas tree shape made out of pictures!

Have fun creating and share how great you experience is! www.Shutterfly.com

50 Free Shutterfly Cards

2010-11-20T19:09:00.000-08:00

A friend posted recently that if you post a message about Shutterfly on your blog that you will receive 50 FREE Holiday Cards. THAT IS AWESOME! I am a huge Shutterfly fan and have made two full year scrapbooks and think their prints are better quality than any others. Here is the link for the site:
blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form/
Hope this works!

Family Pics

2010-11-03T11:11:00.000-07:00

Our friend Jill Brannon took family pictures of our family last week. She did a wonderful job and was able to get cuteness out of the choas.

Here is the link to her photography blog with examples of her work:

jillbrannonphotography.blogspot.com

Halloween

2010-11-01T17:44:00.001-07:00

Our Halloween this year was a four day process :) This year was so fun with both girls into the dressing up and of course the free candy! The previous showed pics of our Halloween party with some little friends on Wednesday. Thursday night we attended a new event to us called Boo!seum. This year was the 15th year and we are glad we found out about it. Nine Little Rock museums host the event with people able to walk between them and play games, do crafts and of course get candy. It was fun to walk around downtown and see all of the other kids.

Making origami bats at the Heifer Village

Decorating Pumpkins

Trick or treating at the Candyland themed Clinton museum

Pop and his boy

Face painting was fun

Friday night was GSFest at our church. We had such a good time riding rides, playing games an seeing our friends. While Alyssa Kate rode quite a few rides this motorcycle ride was Caroline's only one. She was pretty calm before it started but as soon as it did....

she looked like this

Alyssa Kate loves to climb the rock walls on our play set at home and some of the parks we like to go to. There was a climbing wall at the festival and she said she wanted to do it. I was skeptical if she would actually go through with it but was proud of her even trying it. She showed no fear and mounted the over 30 foot wall and climbed like a monkey all the top and pushed a bottom that sounded an alarm to show she made it all the way to the top.

When she was finished on her first side the nice man that was running the wall asked if she wanted to climb the other side and of course she did. So, up the wall she went.

Best Buds

The was our first Halloween in our new house and the girls had a blast. I worked until 7 Sunday night and when I got home the girls and Wes were on the front porch handing out candy. The girls really liked giving candy to all the kids that came by. We set out after I got home to Trick or Treat for the first time. Alyssa Kate is a very shy girl with people she doesn't know and even if those she knows well but that girl went crazy Halloween night. She ran from house to house saying trick or treat and thank you to anyone who would give her candy. I guess if we want her not be shy we need everyone to give her candy when she sees them :)

Fall Fun

2010-10-28T10:49:00.001-07:00

A friend, Amy, threw a Halloween party for the kids Wednesday. We had a blast! She used to be a teacher and put together a wonderful morning of fun activities and yummy treats. This year the girls are fairies and thanks to a few friends letting us borrow a few items they are adorable!

I thought Alyssa Kate's shadow looked like Tinkerbell

The wings mean they can fly :)

The girls loved playing the bowling game...cute idea bowling with pumpkins

The activity I ran was the candy corn spoon race...needless to say there was the one and only race because only the big kids wanted to try.

Alyssa Kate really liked trying not to lose her candy corn...the "Sumners" tongue out technique aids in the concentration!

The made a few crafts one of which was this cute picture of candy corn with torn paper.

When I snapped this picture I was taken back with how graceful and beautiful she looked

This morning another friend, Jill, took family pictures of us at a local park. She is extremely talented and I can not wait to see what she got. After the shoot the girls changed clothes and got to play on some of the cool equipment at the park. They had a blast!

I told Wes about Alyssa Kate's technique when climbing the wall and he said he need to take her to a climbing center and really see what she can do.

My big girl :)

2010-10-22T11:25:00.000-07:00

We found out Wes passed his Bar exam on September 3rd and he was sworn in by a judge so that he could receive his Bar number and be able to officially do his job. Today, though was the official ceremony that every new lawyer must attend to be sworn in by the Supreme court of Arkansas. It was a very nice ceremony and the girls behaved extremely well!

He looks so handsome in the picture :)

Chief Justice Jim Hannah swearing them in

This was just the A-L group

Chief Justice Hannah and Wes

My two favorite men, it really warms my heart that Wes and my dad have become such good friends

Wes and his mom

Our family

This past Saturday was Kathryn's (Wes's sister) wedding and the girls were both flower girls. They did amazing well and both enjoyed themselves immensely. I thought this image of Caroline was just beautiful....

Alyssa Kate is becoming such a big beautiful girl!

Staycation 2010

2010-08-05T17:41:00.001-07:00

After months of Bar prep and stress we were able to take a mini vacation together. A good friend offered us a condo to use for the week and we took full advantage of it. Our week started with Alyssa Kate starting her new PreK program. The program is once a week and is with Comm Central, a home school program in Little Rock. Our hope is that with this year we can "practice" homeschooling and see how it fits with our family. I have felt a strong pull towards homeschooling in the last year and as a family we are going to try and see if that is what God wants for us.

They are a little adorable

My big girl

In her class

Just how much does a family of four need for five days?

Caroline helping daddy with eggs in the condo

First family bowling adventure

Coolest bowling technique ever

I'm the winner

They actually had shoes in Carolines size...the were adorable :)

Playing in the condo pool

looking at the "hot" springs

Cute sisters

Playing indoor, dinosaur putt-putt

Today Wes rented a boat on Lake Oauchita and we had a great time!

Snuggling on the couch after the lake

The Pool

2010-06-03T06:45:00.001-07:00

To say that I am a fan of the pool is a huge understatement! Growing up I was like a fish and spent most of my summers swimming. Some of my favorite memories are of swimming with my friends and family. I don't know what it is but wading in the water is very calming for me. We were so blessed to be able to purchase this home in a neighborhood we love. One of the best perks, to me, has been the prospect of the great neighborhood pool. This week, the girls and I were able to go for the first time. It takes less than one minute to drive there from our house and that is definitely a commute I can handle! The pool is great, with a fun little kid area and a huge big kid area that the girls and I wade over to occasionally so mommy can be completely submerged. I know saying that a pool is a blessing from God sounds trivial but it literally makes me happy to be in the warm sun surrounded by water.

Searching for the perfect wave :)

Splashing is fun

I thought this was a funny picture

Latest News

2010-05-26T07:10:00.000-07:00

In the last 6 weeks our life has been crazy busy! This post has pictures from some of what we have done. The first big event was moving into our new home and that has been a wild adjustment. I do not have any pics of that though because I can't pick between all of the pictures so that will have to be for another time. Wes graduated from Law School on the 15th. I was so proud of his accomplishment! He is the hardest working man I know and am so blessed that God made him mine!
Bowen Law School has a very traditional graduation ceremony thus the purple beret :)

Wes has wanted a truck for a long time and the week after he graduated he traded in his Jeep. He loves his F250. Alyssa Kate likes "daddy's big ole truck" :)

Alyssa Kate had her ballet recital on the 22nd. She has worked so hard all year learning her routine. Aunt Katie did her stage makeup and hair (that was a true gift because her mommy would have been at a loss!). Her time on the stage began with tears and after a little time off stage and a bribe of gum :) she completed the evening and shined. The moment she stepped on the stage after her tears and overcame that fear was one of the proudest moments of me life!

"Stop in the name of love"- Alyssa Kate is in the middle

Caroline holding sisters flowers

We were getting ready to leave the house recently and Caroline came in to show me that she put on her shoes all by herself. She will be 2 years old in 3 weeks and I thought that accomplishment was quite impressive!

This past weekend Wes, Jeff and Linda(his parents) and his Grandparents assembled most of the girls new swing set. It will be complete this week and the girls are soooooo excited!

Caroline dancing like a princess

Aunt Ashley gave Alyssa Kate a really cool game earlier this year and we played it last night. It is like Twister with the ABC's. We have tried to play it before but last night the girls really "got it" and we had a blast!

2010-03-31T14:47:00.000-07:00

The crazy speed that life is churning at right now has really put a damper on my blog postings. My hope is that when we finally move in next weekend I will return to a more regular schedule :)

Last week we were able to do some many fun things with our friends from painting polka dots in the girls new room, going to the zoo, running through the dandelions at Wye Mountain and playing at our friends houses. I have a few from each of these. I did not include the polka dot pics because my goal is to have a before and after photo spread soon. Please pray for a our family next week. Wes has put his all into getting the house in beautiful shape for us to move in and it is my job to pack up the other house. I wake up every morning and hope the little packing elves have come but unfortunately the have not. It should be interesting and fun though!

This was before the zoo on our new front porch...we have some great views from our house perched on its little hill. The sunsets are gorgoeous...I will post a picture soon.

Cheese monkey :)

The next few are the girls just playing in our new backyard last night:

This is my absolute favorite of her recently...she looks like such a little sweet baby!

New House Fun

2010-02-24T09:44:00.000-08:00

As most of you know we purchased our first house in January and have been doing some remodeling on it before we move in. I am going to post some update photos to show what an amazing job Wes and our family and friends are doing. To say that my husband is handy is a huge understatement. After almost seven years of marriage I truly believe there is nothing that my husband could not fix our build. Even if he has no idea how to beforehand he will research it and figure it out. You could look at him and see that he definitely is suited for his white collar job he is training for but he also has this amazingly skilled other half that can create and fix anything with his two hands. He is not only a great daddy to our little girls, who know he hung the moon but also a fantastic supporter and friend to me. I dare say that his ability to fix anything is quite sexy :) Wes removing the old tile and parkay(sp?) flooring from the kitchen

The finished kitchen with new paint (thanks Dad) and beautiful tile laid by my wonderful husband after taking one class at Home Depot :)

The laundry room newly tiled and painted. Wes also built a step down and tiled it because the original step was equal to two steps down at once.

The girls favorite activity in the empty living room is running in circles

Chasing fun!

After dropping some things off at the house the other day Alyssa Kate said "Mommy it would be fun to go play at our new park on this sunny day, right?" I had to agree so we played for about 20 minutes and the girls had a blast!

While she looks terrified she actually loved it and did it a dozen times :)

Snow Fun

2010-02-10T14:20:00.000-08:00

It has been since early December since my last post...FOREVER :) My mother is not toopleased but this last few weeks have been nuts. I will recap:

1. Christmas (magical and wonderful)

2. New Years (fun with friends)

3. Alyssa Kate turned 4 (I still can not believe it, she had two parties and got to Build-A-Bear for the first time)

4. We closed on a house in one of my favorite neighborhoods in Little Rock (I guess I am officially a grown-up now, Wes is working like a dog along with our parents to remodel the inside)

5. I turned 30 (so old :) my amazing friends Alisa and Kim along with my very generous husband and my fajita making mama threw me an 80's themed party with my dearest friends and family).

It has been crazy busy and Wes continues to work himself silly to complete this house. Our goal is to move in by April because then he graduates and starts studying for the bar. There is just too much to post at this time so I will begin with the latest snow day and try to be better in the future (I might post the 80's party because it was a blast!!)

The snow was completely unexpected by Wes and I, so our Monday off together was even more of a treat. He has been so busy with the house, school and work that we hardly spend more than 10 minutes together a day. We spent the day just enjoying our family and it was soooo nice.

Jumping in the snow

Such a ham!

Little helping hands

Making sure it will stay

Cold friend :)

No Arkansas snowman is complete without a Hogs hat

This tree usually clears the ground by a few inches

Caroline had the right idea

The slide still works

Helping Pop break up the ice at the end of the driveway

One serious mama :)

My new camera

2009-12-02T14:30:00.000-08:00

You could say that my only hobby is photographing my girls. I love capturing all of their fun moments! Over Halloween my Sony took a dive off of our stroller and the viewfinders was busted. I have wanted a nice SLR digital camera for a while but this fall hastened when I might get it. After a few weeks of research I settled on Nikon D5000. I purchased one Black Friday at Bedford Camera. This camera is my Christmas + 30th birthday present from Wes. My parents also bought me a great zoom lens as a 30th b-day present, so I am set. The camera is great and while I still do not know how to use most features I am learning. All the pictures in this post were taken with it.

Adorable Nora visiting from Yuma, Arizona

Caroline patting Griffin

Pig races at the Christmas tree farm

Cutting down the tree takes a lot of concentration :)

Enjoying Caroline's frist Hot Chocolate

The girl was fan :)

Christmas Pictures take-1

2009-11-24T13:05:00.001-08:00

I was off this past Saturday for the Razorback game and we decided that we would attempt to get Christmas pictures of the kids. Last year we bought the girls and Jake coordinating outfits and I could not wait to see them on. Ashley (my sister in law) and I hung a black sheet over my parents fence and went to town. Some of them are really good and some are just funny. It was mighty interesting getting a 3 years old, 17month old and 8 month to do anything at the same time.

After every one was back in their regular clothes I realized we did not get any of just my two girls so next week we will give it another whirl.

Fall Fun

2009-11-09T16:50:00.001-08:00

Friday night we had a small bonfire for a few friends and their kiddos. It was a lot of fun and perfect weather! We roasted hot dogs and smores. The babies all ended up asleep inside the house and the big kiddos fell asleep next to the fire on their parents laps. It was perfect!

I walked in the living room this morning and found this scene...it was so sweet I could not pass up the shot. It is a little fuzzy because I had to be far away and sneaky so they wouldn't see me and stop.

Big Jake came to play with us today and we played outside most of the day. It is so fun to see the girls really start to play together. Jake liked the swing and Alyssa Kate loved swinging him.

Caroline's newest trick is to climb on the slide. It is terrifying because at times she is not successful and I am afraid of what bone might break :)

Jake got into the sliding action...he looks thrilled doesn't he :)

Attempts at Fall pictures

2009-10-28T09:35:00.001-07:00

Since this morning was on the first in the last week that it was not raining and I was not at work, I thought we could try to get some cute Fall pictures. Wes's grandparents front yard is like a manicured park and all of the trees have started to change...it is beautiful. So, I put the girls in some cute Fall attire and we walked through the still standing water to a really good spot. I was smart and took Caroline in the stroller so she could not go splashing through the water while I got some of just Alyssa Kate. Alyssa Kate is really into posing these days for pictures. I do not have to ask her to do anything in particular she just strikes a pose. Her pictures turned out pretty good. Then it was Caroline's turn and that was a whole different story. After the first pictures some big neighborhood dogs barked and she started to cry and that was the end of her photo shoot. I took the last few of them going back to out house. I know the one with them running is slightly blurry but it was really cute at the time! Since it is supposed to rain for the next three days I am hoping to try again next week.

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-26T15:12:00.000-07:00

What Awana's has taught us :)

2009-09-22T18:51:00.000-07:00

Alyssa Kate has been in Awana's for two weeks now and is loving it! Each week she is to memorize a verse then say it the next week during her listening time.

Last week her verse was

"all have sinned"

this week the verse is
"God is love"

tonight while telling Wes her verse she said:

"God has sinned"

I know it is wrong to think it is funny but she said it with such a straight face and I just thought about how hard she was trying to keep things straight. After a little review she has it down now but not without making a memory that we will not soon forget :)

2009-09-17T05:16:00.000-07:00

Alyssa Kate started ballet last week and if I may say so myself...she was adorable. She really enjoyed and has spent all week talking about it and asking when she could go back. She tried to do all of the movements they did and I have to admit that during one such routine tears did flow on my part because of how big she is. I don't know where all the time has gone but my baby is a little girl now...it needs to slow down!

Big Jake has been hanging out with us a few days a week now that Ashley is back in the classroom and we are loving it! The girls think he is their personal playmate and get very excited when he comes over!

I came into the living room and found Alyssa Kate watching TV in big Jake's car seat...it doesn't look to comfy to me but they were very intrigued by it.

Caroline also thought Jake's car seat made a great seat to read in.

Caroline loves Tigger and Scooter and thankfully they are usually pretty patient with her. Here she is "snuggling" Tigger who looks thrilled!

The girls amazes me!

2009-08-22T19:36:00.000-07:00

Friday we went to a great new park with Alyssa Kate's buddy Noah. The kids had a blast and Alyssa Kate decided to try the monkey bars and after a few falls she started flying through them. I know that I am biased but the girl amazes me everyday! I wish I could say that I could do this at 3 years old :)

2009-08-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

Alyssa Kate, Caroline and Greyson playing at Rock Creek

Caroline and Alyssa Kate the pig tail twins

Caroline actually left the pig tails in all day!

I walked into their room and Alyssa Kate was reading Caroline a book

Then Caroline wanted in one the action

Caroline used a spoon for the first time last night...it went pretty well

Jake came over to play this morning...he looks thrilled doesn't he :)

Cute Cousins

Poking the baby :)

Hot Springs II

2009-08-07T15:43:00.001-07:00

Thursday

-I bought white cotton dresses at the end of the last summer with the idyllic vision that we would take the girls to the beach this summer. Well, we decided to stay in Arkansas to save money and wait on the beach until the girls were a little older. I brought the dresses with us this week and attempted to get some pictures on the deck under our condo. It was not too successful but with girls that cute you are bound to get something good.

-After the hot photo shoot we changed clothes and went to Hot Springs Tower. It was fun and pretty cheap...both girls got in free. It was pretty windy and cool so it was a nice excursion.

-Wes was told by a coworker about a good restaurant in Mount Ida and a neat spring in the Ouachita National Forrest. After the tower we headed that way. It was supposed to take only about 30 minutes to get there but the whole trip took almost 4 hours round trip because of the gravel roads and things we had to take. The restaurant was great and had a lot of different homemade pies to enjoy after lunch. Then we went the spring which is in Collier Springs. It comes out of a mountain and there is a gazebo built over it and it comes out the other side. The water was ice cold and there was a small pool at the bottom of some little waterfalls. While it took a long time it was neat and Alyssa Kate like the water.

Friday-
- We were told that there was a beach area at Brady Mountain on Lake Ouachita, so we attempted to get the "beach" pictures I wanted with the white dresses. It was quite bright and Caroline was much too interested in eating the sand and rocks but there are a few good ones. After the pictures we changed into swim suits and Alyssa Kate and Wes built sand castles. She really liked it and said that we have to go to a beach with "more" sand soon :)

-When we got back from Brady Mountain Wes took Alyssa Kate to the dock under our condo to fish. While they didn't catch anything she was very proud of her Dora fishing pole.

-Mimi and Pop came up while they were fishing to swim and spend the day. We swam for a few hours then Pop and Wes grilled some burgers for lunch. When the girls went down for a nap Pop and Wes dozed on the couches and Mom and I were able to go shopping which was great. The girls then went home with them so Wes and I could have some fun with friends on the lake.

-Wes and I went to dinner at Fisherman's Wharf that night and had a great time. It was very nice to have dinner just the two of us. Then we went and played miniature golf...it was like a real date :)

Saturday

- We rented a boat with some friends and played on the lake all day. It was lots of fun and I was going to put some pictures up but really it was just a bunch of old guys sking :)

Hope you enjoy!

Hot Springs

2009-08-05T11:19:00.000-07:00

Right now I am sitting on a deck, with my feet propped up, enjoying the warm breeze off of the lake in total silence. I truly believe this is the most relaxed I have been in months! We are in Hot Springs for a week for our summer vacation. We are staying in a lovely condo right on the lake. This condo was a gift from a very generous friend who wanted our family to have a nice, relaxing time. We think the condo is bigger than our house...which I know doesn't say a lot but it is just right for us. There are two bedrooms and 1 3/4 bath, fully stocked kitchen, laundry and living room. The girls love exploring it and Caroline spent the first hour we were here running in circles, touching everything :) We arrived Sunday evening and I made it with only forgetting two things- my hair straightener and Wes's deodorant :) Luckily Walmart is just down the road and we were able to make sure we didn't have a stinky daddy for the week.

Here are some of the highlights:

Monday:

-We went to a local breakfast spot and had some very yummy food....the only problem was that the serving sizes were massive and we left more than half of the food on our plates...lesson learned.

- After breakfast we walked around bath house row and Alyssa Kate was able to touch the "hot spring" water. The next day we saw a creek and she wanted to know if it was hot or cold :)

- We brought the girls buckets and shovels and set out to find a "beach" area that they could build sand castles on. The area we that was suggested to us was, might I say, icky :) I didn't say anything about it though because Wes was very excited to get the girls in the water and play. Alyssa Kate stepped into the water and promptly screamed saying fish were eating her and it was yucky. Luckily within a few minutes it started to thunder so we left. Needless to say it was not a hit but I can honestly I was quietly proud of my little prissy pot, mommy wasn't getting in there either :)

-By the time we made it back to the condo the storm was over and we spent the next few hours in the pool. Everyone loved that and it was not icky :)

Tuesday-

-One of the things we were determined to do this week was to take the girls to the Mid America Science Museum. It turned out to be a huge hit and we stayed for over three hours. There were of course things that were way over their heads but for the most part they were able to play with most things. It was nice that they could manipulate so many different things and get a a vague understanding of how things work. It was fun to watch Alyssa Kate's brain working figuring things out. Wes really wanted to see the lightening cage where they shoot off 1.5 million volts of electricity. It was neat but the loud noise terrified both of the girls so that was over pretty quick :) The highlight was Caroline tossing her milk cup in the fish pond with the gigantic coy fish. Luckily daddy was able to rescue it. :)

-After a good nap we then went to dinner at the Colorado Grill. It was a great restaurant but unfortunately the power went out after being there 20 minutes. It made a fun time in the dark with the girls. Luckily it came back on after about 20 minutes and we were able to get out food. While the wait was not great the food was excellent.

- When that two hour dinner was finished we were ready for some fun. So of to the pool for us again. It is amazing how much splashing in the pool can wear us out!

Wednesday-

-This morning Wes was helping a friend move into the Math Science School so the girls and I were on out own. I took them to the Little Bitty City and they had a blast. It was a lot like the Wonder Place with a few different play areas that made it new and exciting. Caroline was obsessed with the kitchen/market area getting in and out of the chairs. Alyssa Kate loved pushing around a shopping cart and hosting a "dinner" in a play tent. There was also a blow-up jumper that was quite a lot of fun.

-After a yummy dinner of lasagna we took the girls to a go-cart track. Alyssa Kate rode with Wes the first time and she loved it! She told me that she went really fast. Then she, Caroline and I went and rode bumper boats. There were no other people at the time so no real bumping but it was fun. Next was mommy and Alyssa Kate on the go-cart track. It was fun but I spent the whole time worrying about her getting hurt and probably looked like a grandma driving around that track :) To wrap up the evening we played in the arcade and with only $3 in tokens Alyssa Kate won 65 tickets and traded them in for various pieces of junk :)

I will post the rest of the week later!

2009-07-21T18:07:00.000-07:00

We went to Rock Creek yesterday and were there for 15 minutes without any other kids. It was great the girls were able to run and play without having to share the space. It was a lot of fun!

Wes and I took the girls to Wild River Country the other day and Caroline was able to ride on a tube with Wes. She LOVED IT and each time they got off she pointed back to it wanting more! Alyssa Kate liked riding backwards.

The girls and I love to take a little walk everyday to get the mail and just get some fresh air. Alyssa Kate and Caroline were looking amazingly cute that day so I took a few pictures while we took our walk. You know how when you see someone everyday they don't seem to change well that is how it is with my girls. When I looked at the pictures after we came in I was blown away with how big they both looked. It makes me sad to think that they are growing up so fast...I just want to hold them close and treasure the time we have!

2009-07-15T19:17:00.000-07:00

Aunt Ashley was our photographer for Caroline's first birthday and despite the mess they turned out really good. Sunday Wes bought a bike trailer so the girls can join him on bike rides. He has been biking a lot lately and is trying to get to 25 miles. Right now I think he around 15 miles in about an hour. He is a work horse!

Ashely brought big Jake over the other day and we got to play with him. Alyssa Kate loved holding him and Caroline loved playing with the Bumbo I got out for Ashley to borrow. Right before they got here Alyssa Kate sat in this bucket then couldn't get back out. Of course being the great mother I am I took a picture before helping her out :)

The church had a preschool play date today and Greyson was hanging out with us so I took the three little monkeys to play. We did story time first then it was out to the playground for water play. The kids loved it! It felt like it was 400 degrees for me because I was not in a bathing suit but they felt fabulous :)

2009-07-08T19:48:00.000-07:00

It has been over a month since my last post! It is amazing to me just how busy our lives have been recently. We have has a lot of fun and I am thankful for that but also looking forward to some time of a slower pace. We have visited the Zoo, Wild River Country, done VBS, celebrated Caroline's 1st birthday, played with lots of friends, celebrated the 4th (one day early because I had to work) picked peaches and best of all met Dora (thanks to Wes dressing up like Dora for a Dad look-a-like contest) :) I am going to post a bunch of pictures from the month and attempt to do better from now on. Music time at VBS

Some random fun

2009-05-30T20:09:00.000-07:00

We have had some fun this past week so I thought I would include a little collage of the week!

Monday was Memorial day and we didn't do a whole lot but eat dinner at mom and dad's. Alyssa Kate wanted her corn like the rest of us so she had her first corn on the cob instead of having cut off the cob.

Tuesday was Greyson birthday and he got to hang out with us most of the day. That night we celebrated at his house and Alyssa Kate wanted to dress up in his batman costume. She wore most of the costume and he wore the cape. They were quite a pair. Wednesday morning we went to out second play date of the week at Alyssa Kate's buddy Noah's house, long story slightly embarrassing! Then that night she got sick and ended up going to the doctor Friday. Just a virus but she looked so pitiful that I took a picture of her sad face.Alyssa Kate got a computer game in a meal from Chick-Fil-A a few months ago and really enjoys playing it. Caroline was fascinated Friday night when she did.

Today is Saturday and I went to work but our census dropped very low and it was my turn to be overstaffed so I left at 3pm. Alyssa Kate was supposed to go to Greyson's pool party today but she was still running a small fever and spent one hour during nap coughing so we thought that she shouldn't infect all the little children. She has not realized that she missed it and we will have a mock party when Greyson returns in a few weeks from his Grammy's house. When she woke up from nap though she was feeling much better and so she got dressed up and went with her Mawmaw and Aunt Kathryn to a ballet recital. Alyssa Kate was apparently enchanted and Mawmaw has decided to pay for her to have ballet lessons in the Fall which Alyssa Kate is excited about...so is her mommy :) While they were gone Wes and Caroline and I ran some errands. It was nice to spend time with just the big C. After Alyssa Kate got home she and her daddy planted seeds for a wildflower garden. Pawpaw also had a surprise....a nest with four little birds in it in his workshop. We were all excited and got some good pictures.

Caroline was too fun tonight and at dinner she was loving drinking water from a straw but wanted to do it continuously. When we would take it away she would just shake and screw up her face. In the pictures it looks like she is crying or making noise but surprising there is almost no noise coming from her mouth. It was hilarious!

Wes built the beds for the wild flowers then Alyssa Kate sprinkled the seeds and helped daddy cover them up with soil.Alyssa Kate thought the baby birds were very cool!I do need a little advice: Alyssa Kate has a great gag reflex so when she gets a bad cough she will throw up...we just cleaned up the latest a few minutes ago. We have tried Delsym-does no good for her and the doctor suggested honey but it didn't seem to work....any ideas???

Our mini vacation

2009-05-23T03:28:00.000-07:00

Wesley and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on Sunday the 17th. When talking about what fun way to celebrate that time together we decided to take the girls on a trip we had been wanting to for a few months. That may sound odd to some but both of us have so much fun with the girls and find no two better examples of God's gift of our marriage than them. Wesley is the king of finding fun things to do, so he planned the trip and the girls and I were along for the ride. So, on Wednesday we embarked on a little Arkansas vacation. We left the house at 7 am with two sleepy but excited girls. We decided to turn Caroline's car seat around a few weeks early so she could watch the DVD player we borrowed from Mimi and Pop (it was a wonderful distraction). Our first stop was Conway for some breakfast at Chick-Fil-A which was too yummy and fueled us up for the morning. The girls spent most of the morning watching Dora and Diego. I know that we traveled as kids without a DVD player but I am not sure how :) Our next stop was in Alma to pick up some chicken for a our planned picnic lunch. I can honestly say this is the first time I have been there when a KFC has opened. All the people were extremely nice and our chicken and sides were hot and fresh. We took the food and drove to Devil's Den State Park. The weather was beautiful, warm (not hot), low humidity and slightly breezy. Unfortunately they were doing construction on the playground but Alyssa Kate was able to run and play in the grass and climb on the rocks with her daddy. We ate our chicken and sides then Wes attached our little backpack leash to Alyssa Kate and they sat on the rocks and watched the waterfall. It was beautiful and we actually decided after driving around and looking at some of the cabins that we are going to go back this summer for a few days and stay for another mini vacation.

After lunch we told the girls it was nap time and they both slept for a little while, then we arrived at the Wildlife Wilderness Safari in Gentry. For all the parents reading this, this place is a must see for small children, and even us big kids. They charge per person in the vehicle and it cost us $28. We got there a little after 1 pm and the first thing we all wanted to do it get out of the car :) After applying lots of sunscreen on everyone we took off to play in the petting zoo. There are goats, huge potbelly pigs, chickens, roosters, turkeys and even kangaroos. Wes bought a $1 bag of bread and corn to feed the animals and that made us a very popular group :) The goats came running as soon as we were in the fence and no matter how Wes tried to keep them from taking the bag they were persistent. They would reach in his pocket and chew on the bottom of his shorts. Alyssa Kate was leery right at first but quickly warmed up and liked the little goats. Caroline really wanted to touch them but her thumb is constantly in her mouth so Wes kept her from contracting who knows what from them. When we drove in the park the nice lady at the gate wrote on our brochure that Alyssa Kate could have a free pony ride. Wes and I were doubtful we could even get her near the pony because anytime in the past we have tried she has freaked out. On the contrary, she was very excited and let the sweet girl at the pen lead her in and put her on the cute white pony. She held on tight and smiled the whole time. I was so proud of her and kind of sad to see her growing up right in front of my eyes. Next stop was to a building that had some monkey's in it but the best part was a baby monkey in a cage wearing a diaper, sucking his thumb and a baby tiger in another cage snoozing on his back. They were too cute and a nice young guy working there told us that they were away from their parents because the dad's were getting a little too aggressive. After seeing a fun camel and some bunnies we decided to get in the car and take the 5 mile long drive through the safari portion. When you enter into the safari section there are multiple signs not to open your windows, leave your car or feed the animals and we soon found out that some people must feed them because the camels in particular came right up to the windows and licked them and would attempt to push through the top of the window. We did break the rules when no animals were right next to us and rolled down the windows to get pictures. I think Wes and I were just as excited as Alyssa Kate with all of these incredible animals walking next to us in a way that I have never experienced before. Caroline enjoyed all of our excitement and rode in her car seat watching out the window. There were adorable prairie dogs at the end who would come right up to car and you could tell by their portly appearance that they were also used to people feeding them. At the end we got out of the car and went into the kangaroo pen and were able to pet them. They just laid there and let the kids rub all over them and they would rub their head up and down like a dog when you scratched behind their ears. One of them had a joey in her pouch who kept peeking their little head out. That was such a great learning experience for Alyssa Kate and how baby kangaroo's are carried.After 4 hours we left exhausted but so happy from our little adventure.

We checked into the hotel and went to eat at a local restaurant Naploi's where the Italian owner loved Caroline and grabbed her chunky cheeks and kissed her. When we finished stuffing ourselves on homemade noodles and sauces we walked next store to an ice cream shop and split some yumminess. We then took our tired bodies back to hotel and everyone took a bath because in Alyssa Kate's words we "smelled like a goat" :) We all laid down to sleep and watched the last 20 minutes of American Idol, at which time Alyssa Kate announced she liked Adam even though we told her that Kris was from Conway where we have eaten at that morning...she was not impressed :) Thursday morning we all woke up at 8 and took it slow getting ready then visited the original Walton 5 & 10 and the giant Walmart Supercenter across from the headquarters. The store was big and very clean...I guess that is what you get when the big boss is just across the street. Then we drove to War Eagle Mill. I was skeptical of a mill being anything worth visiting but it turned out to be beautiful and fun. We got there at lunch time and ate in the restaurant at the top of the mill which had great food, then did a little shopping in their gift shop...I bought some yummy smelling pecan, cinnamon waffle mix that they make there... I can't wait to try it. After lunch we walked outside across this great old bridge and watched the water wheel that operates the mill. Alyssa Kate ate a huge blue sucker that she proceeded to get all over her face, arms and some on her legs...not sure how that happened...and loved every minute of it. Is there anything better then watching your child enjoying something so much!?! We loaded up after the sucker and headed home. We stopped in Russellville and played at a park next to Lake Dardanelles and ate at Whataburger(yummy). Next stop was home where we found that Wes's grandparents had paved the little driveway that leads to our house as an anniversary present. It was a perfect end to a perfect trip! God blessed us with great weather, safe travels and a fantastic family time!

Caroline at Devil's Den State Park

The beautiful waterfall

Feeding the goats

Sort of petting :)

Brave girl riding

Ride 'em cowboy

Love that thumb

Sleepy baby tiger

Thumb sucking baby monkey

Huge camel

Beautiful deer

Playful baby llama's

Herd of zebra

Soaking water buffalo

Camel wanting some yummies

Antelope

A longhorn just for Pop

Bison of all colors

Caroline thinks the camels are funny

Napping tigers

More soaking

Sweet baby girl

Reindeer

Mommy and doe in the shade of a monkey cage

Fluffy begging prairie dogs

Peacock hanging out on picnic table

Loving on the kangaroo

Mommy with joey in her pouch(see the leg sticking out)

Fun train

Striking a pose

Enjoying a sucker at War Eagle Mill

Mommy and baby

The loves of my life!

One stickey girl

Lovin' that Diego

Park at Lake Dardanelle

That baby loves to crawl
Swinging monkey

Another flying monkey

Caroline is walking!

2009-05-10T18:53:00.000-07:00

Caroline took her first steps Friday at her Mawmaw and Pawpaw's house. This is fitting because Alyssa Kate took her first steps at Mimi and Pop's house :) I have been out of commission for the past few days because I hurt my back and was unable to take care of them by myself. My MD told me to wear a sling on my left arm at all times to allow that side of my back to heal. This posses many issues as you can imagine taking care of my girls especially Caroline. When I hurt my back Mom took off that day to help with the girls, then Alisa took off a day, then my mother-in-law, Linda, took off Friday to help. I could not have made it without all their help! The girls spent the night Friday at Linda's and most of Saturday also so I could take my muscle relaxers and rest. I could not go to work because of all of this but there were some good things that came out of this. I was able to go to church with the girls this morning and took Alyssa Kate to big church with me. She did pretty well, we only had a little drama when the hymnal feel on her foot and the corner jabbed the top. It left a bruise and she let out a good yelp that most people in the sanctuary seem to hear...it was precious :) At the end of service Dr. Chesser was praying and I guess Alyssa Kate thought it was slightly winded because she asked me "why are you praying so hard momma" :) It is very difficult to keep praying without laughing after that!
Back to Caroline walking...last night we took 4 1/2 minutes of video to get her to take two steps in a row :) Tonight I bribed Caroline with my cell phone to get some pictures of her walking, then Alyssa Kate got into the act and bribed her too.

It is so hard to believe that my baby is walking and will be one in a little over a month. How did it go so fast?

Play date

2009-04-27T18:29:00.000-07:00

Today we had a play date at our house. It is not an easy endeavor to host anything way out here in the country but we tried. Alyssa Kate was so happy that so many of her little friends came to play and I was so happy that so many mommy friends came to play! :) I was fearful it would rain but it held off and was just warm and quite humid. The kids did not mind and ran their little tails off swinging, throwing the balls, playing golf, driving the Jeep and riding various other toys. After playing for was while they ate their lunches picnic style outside, the mommies were smart and ate inside away from the humidity. After lunch were ice cream sundaes made to order. Inside while the kids played we all talked about what else but our kids and played with each others babies. There were 6 babies, all quite adorable and very smiley. There were a few minor injuries (mostly Alyssa Kate) and few squables but all in all it was very nice! I count it such a blessing to have wonderful Christian women to not only hang out with but to share this time of my life with while attempting to navigate this winding road of motherhood!

Jake and Griffin hanging out

Eden cheesing :)

Some of the big kids swinging

Caroline all smiles--see the tongue--check out the next picture

Apparently it is a family trait to stick out your tongue when smiling :)

Alyssa Kate, Greyson, Noah and Dalton

All of friends playing

Picnic Fun

Ryder Ray-too adorable!

When I was in the shower tonight Alyssa Kate came into the bathroom and said "Mommy, I had a lot of fun playing today, I love you" then quickly ran off to play. That was a perfect thank you :)

April Fun

2009-04-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

I thought I would post a few new pictures from the past month. The girls are growing up so fast and learning so many new things these days! I hope you all enjoy these!

Caroline talking to Scooter through the door

Caroline's first time riding in the Barbie Jeep

Riding around the garden

Alyssa Kate swinging on MawMaw and PawPaw's wooden swing

Caroling clapping for Alyssa Kate while she was swinging

Alyssa Kate put together a puzzle we got from the Georgia Aquarium, it was quite difficult but she had a blast!

Caroline and Alyssa Kate watching a bird show at the Zoo today.

My girls watching the Elephants

Caroline watching the fun bear

As you can tell Caroline was DONE by the time we got the Grizzly bears who are no longer hibernating (the bear is the brown blob in the middle of the picture on the left)

Easter Fun

2009-04-12T18:32:00.000-07:00

Easter 2009 was a fantastic family time for the Heltzes! I was off from work which meant I was able to go to church with my family!!!!! I was so excited and this morning with the chance of rain we let the girls get their Easter basket gifts then hunted eggs. We were all still in our pajamas and Alyssa Kate choose to wear her rain boots, it was priceless! We took tons of pictures and videos, both girls had fun and we made it before the rain! Then we went to church and I felt so much warmth and peace being able to worship with my family! I really have missed church and the few times I am able to go I really cherish! After church we went over the Mimi and Pops and hunted eggs and attempted to get our first picture of all of the cousins, it was great! After a nap we went over to Wes's families and ate more and played. The day was fun and exhausting! I am so thankful for the time with my family!

This is a random picture but Caroline has recently started letting go and standing while holding onto nothing. She is growing up toooooo fast :)

Trip to Atlanta

2009-04-07T10:20:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday Mom, Alyssa Kate, Caroline and I embarked on an adventure to Atlanta, GA. I was headed to the Society of Pediatric Nurses annual conference to present a poster about a research project I did last year. Mom's best friend lives north of Atlanta so we decided to make a girls trip and spend time with her too. We planned quite well for provisions with lots of snacks, DVDs and toys. Google maps said the trip would take 8.5 hours, very optimistic. We left Wednesday morning with two kids in their pajamas at 4:45 am. We didn't stop the first time until after we made it through Memphis. After breakfast we continued with full tummies and a long way to go. We made it to Atlanta at about 3;45 pm. While it did take us 11 hours it was a great trip. The girls were in great moods and spent most of their time watching Diego and Dora. I don't know how we ever traveled before without a DVD player! That night we went to a fantastic mexican restaurant Mama Nimfa's, the best fajitas I have ever had! After dinner we took the girls swimming in the hotel indoor pool. It was so much fun! Thursday I put up my poster and attended some session and visited a few vendors, then went to IKEA..I was on cloud nine :). Friday after my second presentation we took the girls to the Georgia Aquarium. It was amazing! I think mom and I had as much fun as the girls. Caroline spent the whole time shaking and squealing. She tried to grab the fish when they swam by and got frustrated when she couldn't get them :) After the Aquarium went across the street to Centennial Park and played on some playgrounds and around the Olympic fountain. Saturday we went to visit mom's friend Eve and shopped at the Mall of Georgia. That is one thing I miss about living north of Atlanta, all the great shopping!. We left Sunday around 5:20 am (Little Rock time) and while there was a little more whining that day it took us only 10.5 hours to get home and the girls did great. We were all exhausted but happy to be home. Wes greeted us in the driveway waving a Razorback flag and blowing a noise maker...I think he missed his girls :)

Caroline sleeping like an angel

Alyssa Kate snoozing

The world's largest McDonald's playground in Birmingham, AL (that's Alyssa Kate in front of the red square)

Caroline was very excited to be out of the car in the hotel!
Alyssa Kate was excited too jumping on the bed!

Loving fajitas with Mimi

Caroline doing her "cute baby" pose

My poster

Swimming with the girls

Mimi and Caroline watching the beautiful whale

Walking through the cool tunnel of fish and sharks

Caroline trying to "grab" the shark swimming by

Both girls talking to the fish

Alyssa Kate with "Milky the fish" and Caroline with her "Mimi whale" from the aquarium

Playing at Centennial Park

Alyssa Kate with her "Auntie" Eve

Caroline playing with her "Jam Man"

Our Spring Break

2009-03-24T02:50:00.000-07:00

Wes is on spring break this week and we decided to go on a little day trip Monday. We went to Hot Springs and visit Garvan Woodland Gardens for the Tulip Extravaganza. Neither us of had ever been there and it turned out to be a great place to go. Alyssa Kate loved running around and we had a nice picnic by a little pond. The weather was great and the tulips were beautiful. We spent about two hours there and have decided to to make this a yearly family tradition. We then found a park in a neighborhood and played on the playground for a little while. We ate dinner in Hot Springs and then came home with two very exhausted little girls. It was a great family trip and I hope we can get away and do it again soon!

What was I thinking? :)

2009-03-18T06:06:00.000-07:00

Every year I take Alyssa Kate to Wye Mountain to take pictures with the daffodils. Last year I had an idyllic visions of her and her soon to come baby sister (in their matching outfits of course) taking breathtaking pictures together. WELL, then there was yesterday. I work weekends now so I needed to go during the week. I knew I needed someone to go with me because it would be hard to get their attention and take the pictures. For some reason yesterday I got the brilliant idea to go by myself at the spur of the moment, at nap time, after leaving Jon and Ashley's house visiting big Jake. I am not a spontaneous person, I usually plan something out until it is not fun for me anymore but for some reason yesterday I was living on the edge :) So when I got there they were both sleeping, despite the short nap they were both in good moods. Alyssa Kate loves to run in the daffodils and apparently Caroline loves to eat them. I hope that daffodils ingestion does not cause any long term damage because I am sure she probably ate at least parts of 6 of them. That does not include the pounds of grass she attempted to shove in her mouth. Most of the pictures I have them together Caroline is putting something in her mouth and Alyssa Kate is attempting to take it out. I also have never been so wholeheartedly ignored by two people than by them when I wanted them to look at me :) It was a nice warm day but by the end of our wrestling match I was worn out and HOT :)

Yummy daffodils!

All in all we ended up with some cute ones. Next year though I am definitely taking some one with me :)

2009-03-16T14:37:00.000-07:00

Last week Wes had the Flu and was out of commission for a few days. During those days I slept in the girls room so he could have the bed to himself. Alyssa Kate sleeps like a wild bear so we could not share her twin size bed. She slept in her sleeping bag in the floor and thought it was really cool. Well now that Wes is better I have relocated back to my bed but she is still sleeping in her sleeping bag. I took a picture of her on the floor the other night and with her perfectly good bed in the background. Last week also in the midst of big Jake being born Caroline finally got her first tooth, well actually she got both of her two front teeth on the same day. She is very cute and keeps licking them, trying to figure them out. They are still so little I haven't been able to get a good picture but will post one when you can actually see it :) Today Wes came home early and played with the girls outside. I looked out the window and this is what I saw.They both loved it and as long as Alyssa Kate drove Caroline would sit and laugh. Wes stayed close at hand to make sure she did not bail ;) It is so much fun now that they are getting older and can play together. Sharing is a battle but one that I can see a little progress in. I always wanted a sister and hope that they can find a friendship that lasts a lifetime.

I AM AN AUNT!!!!!

2009-03-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

Today I became an Aunt for the first time to the cutest little boy, Jacob "Jake" Michael Sumners. He was born at 9:14 am with one push (way to go Ashley) and weighs 7 lbs 4 oz, 21 inches long. He is of course very handsome and I can also tell he will be very smart and successful :) He has the Sumners nose and Ashley's big toes :) Jonathan and Ashley are exhausted but doing great! Alyssa Kate got to hold him this afternoon and told him that she loved him. When we got home she told Wes she held her baby brother today :) We are in Arkansas afterall :) We did not let Caroline get too close to him because she likes to "pat" baby heads a little too rough but I did get a cute picture of Mom with all of her grandbabies :)

I know this has nothing to do with being an Aunt but I have to include it. Alyssa Kate has wanted a scooter for a while and I found one for $7 yesterday at Duck Duck Goose so I couldn't pass it up. Last night she put on all of her safety gear and because it was raining and 35 degrees outside she rode it around the kitchen. I thought it was hilarious that she was so "protected" in our small kitchen. It is not cool when your mom is a pediatric nurse :)

A very busy day!

2009-03-04T18:32:00.000-08:00

Today was one of the most interesting days! My best friend Alisa went back to work after 8 weeks on maternity leave and her little man Griffin got to come and play with the girls and I! He will come three times a week for at least the next 4 weeks. All I know is I have a new appreciation for those who have their babies very close together. Having two babies taking bottles at the same time was probably our biggest obstacle. All in all it was good day. I don't know how mothers of more than two children split their time though. I felt all day that I was not paying attention to one of them and felt guilty about that. Alyssa Kate loved having another baby in the house and Caroline thought he was her personal play toy, I had to watch her very carefully! Griffin is such a sweet little boy who makes me want a little boy very much!!! We had a busy morning but the afternoon proved to be the most fun. Caroline has been battling ear infections for the past 4 weeks, through 2 different antibiotics, and started yesterday with the same symptoms all over again. Alyssa Kate has never had an ear infection so this is new frontier for us. It is so frustrating because she seems to get over it and then catches another cold and that goes to her ears. I called this morning to see what our pediatrician wanted us to do and she said to come in. So, I took all three kids to the pediatricians office after they woke up from naps. I got many interesting looks from people with my 3 year old, 8 month old and 8 weeks old. I got quite a few "bless your heart" comments also from passersby :) I am sure we were a sight :) I told Alyssa Kate that Griffin would be back tomorrow and she said that she wanted him to be her baby brother like he was Greysons. I took that as a good sign that although that day was busy and at times tricky we did a pretty good job.

My girls are getting too big too fast!

2009-02-26T12:34:00.000-08:00

Last week Alyssa Kate went to a birthday party for her buddy Hannah and after the party I was looking at the pictures and realized that almost all of them were of Alyssa Kate and Greyson together. While there were many other children there, those two seem to stay together. They played air hockey together. It was funny to see them and remember all the times as a teenager and a college student I played that game...I can't believe I already have a child old enough to play. The party was in the children's area at our church and they have a really cool set up which includes beds of old trucks and I tried to get a picture of the two of them playing in there. When I went over there they were laying down with hands under theirs chins but of course when I made myself known they both changed their poses :)

Since Caroline started pulling up on furniture and standing up she has decided that she would rather do that than anything else. It has led to quite of few bumps on head but that does not stop her. In the last few days she has let go for a few seconds and wobbled a bit then grabbed back on to whatever she standing next to. She really enjoys cruising along the couch also. It has opened a whole new world for her to get all the things we have put out of her reach!

Caroline was born bigger than Alyssa Kate but only a little over a pound but since that time she has exploded in growth. I truly believe that God has blessed us with this tall child because it really helps our small income. The girls were born in opposite seasons and I was worried we would not be able to pass along any of Alyssa Kate's clothes. But I need not worry Caroline had been able to fit at every turn. She is 8 months old and has been wearing 12 month clothing for two months. I pulled out Alyssa Kate's 18 month clothing recently and it all will fit Caroline this summer. I will not have to buy her anything to wear...that does not mean I won't but it will be a lot less :) Today I put Caroline in a dress that Alyssa Kate wore when she was 14 months old. It is one of my all time favorites of hers, it was so funny to see Caroline in it. You will notice in the picture that Caroline's hair is up in the fountain on her head...that is because she has recently decided to take her barrettes out and eat them. Her hair is so long it hangs in her face so I had to come up with a different solution...it is pretty cute though.

Warm day, Lots of play!

2009-02-18T19:24:00.000-08:00

Today was one of those fantastic Arkansas days where it should be 4o degrees outside and it is 70. The girls and I tried to spend as much time outside as we could, considering tomorrow it will be in the 40's again. Caroline can not walk yet so she spends a lot of time in one of two swings in the yard to keep her from eating things on the ground. She loves the green swing because it is suspended from a tree and has a huge swing girth.

When Alyssa Kate was 6 months old we figured out that we had already taken about 1,000 pictures of her since her birth (I know it is ridiculous) well so by saying that the girl knows a thing or two about getting her picture taken. While we were outside today she told me she wanted me to take a picture of her with this tree and when I turned around she was already posing like this. It cracked me up! We have created a monster :)

To cap off our day of fun outside we went over to play with Alyssa Kate's best buddy Greyson. We took the kids to a park in their neighborhood. Alyssa Kate and Greyson fight like brother and sister but like a brother and sister love spending time together and have fun doing just about anything. While swinging they would just look at each other and crack up. I love that their are such good friends!

There was this see-saw that they could stand on and we were sure that Greyson would surely launch my skinny girl across the park. They may only be 8 months apart in age but he almost 15 pounds heavier than her but some how with his bouncing she held on....that's my girl!

I also just have to throw this in because I thought it was too cute of Alisa and Greyson. This bar has a step and you stand on it and spin, well Alisa climbed on there and they had too much fun. Greyson was quite dizzy though afterwards and could not walk straight.

A not so free Valentine's and a standing baby

2009-02-15T19:12:00.000-08:00

Friday night Wes and I went out for Valentine's Day because I was working on Saturday. We were very excited because not only did we have a gift card to eat at Macaroni Grill but I had also won two free tickets to the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra production that by calling into a radio station a few weeks ago. We were going to have a really good free night! When we got to Macaroni Grill it was going to over an hour wait to be seated and that would only give us 30 minutes to eat before the symphony started. That was not going to work so we decided to go downtown and eat somewhere close to the where the show would be. We went to a restaurant right down the street and had some very yummy sushi! We were really having a good time talking about everything from law school, the girls, buying a house and even starting a restaurant. I looked at my watch to see how much time we had eventually and it was actually 5 minutes after the Symphony was scheduled to start. We were not finished with dinner and decided that we were having such a good time together talking that we would not go and find somewhere to get some dessert. After a very delicious dessert we drove home and spent time with Caroline who happened to be a awake. We realized how much we had missed just talking and spending time together. It was definitely worth giving up the free night to have quality time together!

I work only two days a week and I know that so many other mommies have to work much more but I really miss my my girls when I am away. Caroline though made my day today by waiting to until I got home to pull up to a standing position for the first time. She has been crawling to furniture recently and trying but had not figured it out yet. Tonight though she crawled over to a rocking chair and just pulled up like she has been doing it for years. Here is the sequence:

I thought it would be fun to put a picture of Alyssa Kate and Caroline the first times they both stood up. I looked at the date and it turns out they were both 8 months old.

Valentine's Day

2009-02-13T12:45:00.000-08:00

This year for Valentine's Day I thought it would be fun to make cards for some of our family. I was unaware that this would end up being a four day affair. I am not sure how a preschool teacher gets 8 kids to do a simple project all at one time. Between chasing Caroline and redirecting a 3 year old who wants to do 14 things at one time it became a marathon craft project rather than a short run. We made Valentines with Caroline and Alyssa Kate's hand prints that we turned into flowers for the grandparents. For the other family members Alyssa Kate used crayons, stickers and scissors.

Yesterday was a beautiful day so I moved the craft operation outside. The girls loved it and it was nice to get some fresh air. Alyssa Kate is trying to learn to use her scissors. Any suggestions on helping her hold them the right way or will it all just work itself out?

Today I put the girls in a couple of Valentine shirts I got them because tomorrow I will have to work and wouldn't get to see them wear them. I took about 12 pictures of them together and just had to settle for this one. Trying to take a picture of a 3 year old and wiggly 7 month old is a trip!One more pictures- For her birthday Alyssa Kate got a leotard from her Aunt Kathryn and she wore it yesterday for 2 hours. My favorite part was the Tinkerbell sock and Cinderella shoes!

The moments that make it all worth it!

2009-02-11T16:45:00.000-08:00

I was cleaning the kitchen the other day and Caroline woke up from a nap. I went and got her out of her crib and put in the living room with her toys to play while I finished. I wasn't in the kitchen very long before I heard squeal's of delight, that is usually a sign of trouble i.e. the attack on tigger the cat. She had crawled to the other side of the living room and was "helping" me with the laundry.We were at mom and dads the other day to celebrate dads birthday and I got this great picture of Caroline playing with her Big Jon.

We had a storm roll through last night and it brought with it so really strong winds today. The girls and I went outside this morning to play in it and Alyssa Kate said it sounded "like a helicopter was sitting on our house". I took some pictures of them swinging together. Alyssa Kate spent quite a while swinging Caroline and as you can see they both loved it! Then Alyssa Kate wanted to swing too and thought it would be fun to sit on the swing sideways until the great hair puller struck again....being the good mom I took a picture before intervening :) Shortly after that she turned around and started swinging normally and told me "mommy put your camera down and come have fun with me and my swing". I thought that was great and I surely put my camera down and pushed her!

This afternoon I was changing the sheets on all the beds and after I did Alyssa Kate's bed I put Caroline up there so I could do hers and she would not get into the hundreds of toys she is not big enough to play with yet. When I put her on the bed she was sitting up but I guess the lovey and Alyssa Kate's nigh nigh were to appealing and she ended up laying down and sucking her thumb. I know I shouldn't think the thumb thing is cute but I really do!!!!

The funny things kids say!

2009-02-09T12:05:00.000-08:00

I am always amazed how funny Alyssa Kate can be and thought I would share with you a few of our fun conversations recently.

1. We have been trying to have immediate and visible consequences for Alyssa Kate's negative behavior and last week she got mad about something in the car and took her bow off and threw it to the floorboard in the car. When she did that I told her that since she choice to throw it that she was choosing not to wear a bow for the rest of the week. That may not sound to bad but I had a plan to hammer the fact home. Having two girls we have collected many bows, some are big and some are little. Caroline usually wears the smaller ones but for the next few days I made a conscious effort to put the larger bows in her hair. I did not say anything about it to Alyssa Kate until she made a comment the first day that Caroline had one her bows in and she wanted to wear one. I told her that all of the bows belong to both of them and then reminded her about her choice and consequence. On the second day of the bow fun here is what our conversation consisted of:

Alyssa Kate: "Mommy, Caroline has one of my big bows in again, I want one"
Me: "Alyssa Kate, all of our bows are for both of you and you can not wear one today, do you remember why?"
Alyssa Kate: "Yes because I threw mine in the car but mommy come to my room please so I can show you baby Caroline's bows"

I thought it was hyserical that she might have thought I was confused about the bows and needed to show me : )

2. I was getting dressed the other day and was puting on my bra. Of course I was not doing this alone because I can do nothing alone with 3 year old and 7 month old.

Alyssa Kate: "Mommy, can you show me how to do that (referring to putting on the bra)?"
Me: "Yes, one day mommy will show you how to"
Alyssa Kate: "When?"
Me: "Well, when you chest is as big as mommy's I will teach you how to"
Alyssa Kate: pulling up her shirt "But mommy I have two of them here (pointing)"
Me: "Yes, you do but they are much to small to need a bra right now"
Alyssa Kate: " Caroline has a small chest too...but I think hers is bigger than mine"

Caroline is a little chunkier than Alyssa Kate so it is probably true that there is a size difference :) I was thinking though that I might have another ten years before they compared sizes :)

Hope you enjoy these....I know I did!

The attack baby

2009-02-03T19:12:00.000-08:00

I was cooking dinner last night and heard our cat Tigger make an odd noise in the livingroom. When I went in the see what was going on I saw my precious sweet Caroline "loving" on her :) Poor Tigger!
She crawled all over her and tried to eat her.Then when Tigger had a enough and got up Caroline chased her!

Caroline has recently tried a sippy cup, most of the time she chews on the spout. If you look above her left eye near her hair line there is her first battle wound from crawling, a very small red mark.

Tonight Alisa, Greyson and Griffin came over to play. After dinner Alyssa Kate and Greyson watched a little Caillou. They were too cute cuddled up on the couch together.

The princess and the crawler

2009-02-02T11:52:00.000-08:00

Alyssa Kate received a lot of great things for her birthday and every day we have tried to play with a few of them. Today she wanted to dress up in her "princess" dress. Her very great aunt Anna gave her a Cinderella dress and her Mimi and Pop gave her some dress up shoes that just happen to match. She then told me that a princess wears a crown, which we unfortunately do not have, but she settled for a pony tail and pretty bow. She looked too adorable and pranced around the house for almost two hours.

While Caroline does not have princess yet she is just as much of a ham :) I was trying to take some close up pictures of her today but she kept crawling over to the camera and trying to take it :)
The interference is cute though :)

She has been "combat" crawling for a month now and recently she has taken to getting on her knees and rocking back and worth, sliding one knee forward then giving up...we are progressing though :) She at cheerios for the first time today and thought that was very cool. She is getting great at her pincer grasp...she needs to though becuase her OCD mama breaks little cheerios into 4 pieces :)

Wonder Place

2009-01-27T12:40:00.000-08:00

We took adavantage of a mommy and me outing that was provided by our wonderful church. This time was to a great place called the Wonder Place that has all kinds of fun for little kids, from a play house, play market, water table, dress up and other hands on activities. Caroline played on the water table and loved playing with the boats until she decided to eat it :) Alyssa Kate also liked playing with the very cold water.

Caroline really enjoyed this picture with baby faces...she particulary loved the second one from the left :)
There is this neat air/tube system that the kids get to send balls and material through and alter the air flow...Alyssa Kate rally liked it!

Caroline really liked the pretty baby in the mirror :)

Alyssa Kate's 3rd Birthday

2009-01-26T19:34:00.000-08:00

Saturday we had Alyssa Kate's 3rd birthday party. Dora is her obsession right now so that was an easy theme choice. I made star cupcakes (like Dora's explorer stars) and an extra cake because you can never have too much cake. This is the first year that we invited a few kids her age to the our party. They all got to decorate a backpack (like Dora carries) which they later used to catch candy from the pinata.
The Dora pinata had strings on the bottom for the kids to pull, we decided not to let them swing a bat at the pinata because I figured they would be more likely to hit each other than Dora :) They all seem to have a really good time and that night before be Alyssa Kate told me "I really liked my birfday party today mommy" and that made it all worth it!!!

Caroline 6 months picture

2009-01-21T17:46:00.000-08:00

My wonderful friend Kim took some amazing pictures of Caroline for her 6 month poses! She always seems to find that right angle to get the perfect shot of my girls :) We love her!

I painted her toe nails the day before with the help of her big sister. They are too cute!

This is her underwear model pose :)

Swinging and Skating!

2009-01-17T18:19:00.000-08:00

I took the girls the park Wednesday and we had a blast!!!

Caroline loves swinging and I tried to get a picture of the two of them swinging together but I could not get them to look at me at the same time.
Oh well :) Caroline also sat on the seesaw and I got the one of my favorite pictures of her to date.
Friday night we went to the roller rink with our Sunday School and took the Alyssa Kate. She did great!
She started hanging on to us with skates that really rolled and even got to where she could hang onto the wall and "skate".
We thought we were being nice and got her skates that would not roll at all later on, so she could get more confidence and "skate" by herself. Well, she did and walked around but then asked if she could have her "real" skates back because she didn't want to walk :) It is bad when they are smarter than us at 2 :)

Last weeks fun!

2009-01-12T20:12:00.000-08:00

Last week was Wes's last week home before having to return to Law School so we tried to do some fun stuff.
We took the girls to Jump Zone and for the first time Caroline got into the act by going down a few slides with her daddy

Then we had a great surprise, my best friend Alisa had her second son unexpectantly on Tuesday and her son Greyson got to come play with us for a few days while his mommy was in the hospital. We were able to go the Zoo, one of the bears took a huge interest in Alyssa Kate and Greyson, he kept smelling them...it creeped me out!!!! Alyssa Kate got to hold him and even feed him one time.
The day they came home from the hospital we took a picture of the 4 of them...the whole crew.

2009-01-02T14:41:00.000-08:00

Here I am again posting and it has not been 4 months :) Stranger things have happened. Caroline is trying to master solid foods...most of it ends up on her but she doesn't seem to mind!
One of Alyssa Kate's favorite daily activities is to walk down to the mailbox..here are the girls today...Caroline thinks she is going to stand up in her car at only 6 months old :)
One of Caroline's favorite toys from Christmas is her Glow Worm...she thinks it rocks and loves to "eat" the face when it lights up.
Caroline also received some cool blocks from her Great Aunt Anna and loves to chill with her "piggy" slippers on.

2008-12-29T19:58:00.000-08:00

Caroline hanging out with the monkeys :)

2008-12-29T19:55:00.000-08:00

Two of my monkeys at the Zoo!

2008-12-29T19:49:00.001-08:00

Cuddling in the bed with their matching pj's :)

2008-12-29T19:41:00.000-08:00

2008-12-29T19:27:00.000-08:00

So my attempt to be a blogger has failed miserably :) I guess two posts in 4 months is pretty bad. We had a fantastic Christmas. The girls had a blast. Caroline loved all of the paper to chew on and Alyssa Kate had "Dora" themed presents. It was so much fun to watch the excitment through their eyes. Caroline is now 6 months old fully sitting up by herself, saying Mama and Dada and trying to eat solid foods. Alyssa Kate is almost a month from 3 years old and loves playing with her new ABC game her Aunt Ashley gave her. She is amazingly accurate with matching her letters and playing the game. Wes is on Christmas break and loving all the time off with his girls. I have already taken down the Christmas decorations and am glad to have my clean house back :) I will attempt to have post some new pictures.

2008-08-29T18:42:00.000-07:00

Attempting to be a blogger!

2008-08-29T18:32:00.000-07:00

This is my feeble attempt at becoming a blogger. We are living such a crazy life now with both the girls that this could very well be my only post :) Caroline is almost 10 weeks old and thriving. It seems like forever ago that Alyssa Kate was this little and you forget how amazing God created us to be with everything she is learning and how she is changing every day. She loves to chew on everything and is relunctantly participating in tummy time...needless to say she is not amused with that time of her say. Alyssa Kate loves being with her little sister and Caroline loves to watch Alyssa Kate run around...she looks like she is watching a tennis match.
Alyssa Kate is obsessed with Elvis Presley right now. Every night Wes has to find "Blue Shoes" as she calls it on You Tube and she dances which includes standing still and shaking her left leg. We got video the other night of her sitting at the desk after her bath jammin to Elvis.
Wes started his second year of law school this week and is loving every minute of it. The man thrives on challenges :) I am loving being home with my girls and have don't start back to work for another 3 weeks. At that time I will be working weekends because I really want to stay home during the week and play with my girls. This allows me to work 24 hours a week and get paid for 32. It will be great. The girls get to stay with their daddy on the weekends...and variuos grandparents.
I will attept to continue this but this might be all you get :)

3 weeks!

2008-07-11T08:57:00.001-07:00

2008-06-30T07:27:00.000-07:00

New Pics

2008-06-30T07:23:00.001-07:00

2008-06-25T12:57:00.000-07:00

2008-06-16T06:46:00.000-07:00

Caroline Marie Heltz

June, 15 2008 @ 8:24 P.M.

Weight: 7 lbs 5 oz

Length: 20 3/4 "