Another Milestone

Siena had her first dentist appointment last week, and it couldn't have gone better. She was the PERFECT patient and was definitely enjoying herself! I figured the hygienist would just do a look-over and light cleaning, but Siena was so well behaved that she ended up getting the entire treatment -- scraping, flossing, polishing, fluoride, etc. I guess reading all of those stories about going to the dentist paid off! Here's hoping for many repeat performances.

What a trooper

The "after" shot. Check out those pearly whites!

Raiding the treasure chest -- reward for a job well done. Siena picked out a Barbie playhouse game. What is it about little girls and Barbie?

Bathtime Silliness

Yes, that's just shampoo holding up her hair. It's come a long way since 2009 (below)!

Before I Forget...

I have to remind myself from time to time that the true purpose of this blog isn't to keep track of our various activities (though that certainly is nice), but rather to record the girls' cute random highlights before they're forgotten forever. So before I'm tempted to procrastinate any longer on this post, here are some of my latest favorites:

Elizabeth
At nearly 20 months now, our little Libby is quite the ham and keeps us all laughing. She has been obsessed with babies for awhile, and that obsession doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Her favorite toys are her baby dolls and play kitchen, and you'll often find her spending what seem to be hours (when in reality it's maybe 10 straight minutes) whipping up some delicious concoction at her little stove while a baby doll is taking a bath in the sink. She is crazy excited about her new little brother/sister (that's right -- we're having a baby! More on that later...). Libby is constantly pulling up my shirt to say "hi baby!" to my belly, which is fine at home but can get a bit embarrassing when we're out in public. She interacts with my belly about as much as one might interact with a real baby, feeding my belly food and drink, dressing my belly, dancing with my belly, even brushing my belly's teeth. Cracks us up! The best is when we're holding hands as a family around the table to sing grace, and Libby will lift up my shirt so she can hold the baby's hand -- completely umprompted. The girl is something else.

Baby stew, anyone?

Libby continues to be our champion eater and sleeper. She still loves to cuddle. She is surprisingly polite for a 1.5-year-old and says "thank you" for pretty much anything you do for her. She shares much more willingly than her big sis (a 2nd child trait, I'm sure!). Her vocabulary is expanding more every day and her level of comprehension often surprises me. She'll be speaking in little sentences before long! So exciting. I love you so much, my little bugaboo!


Siena
Siena is definitely all little girl now, though her toddler moodiness still rears its ugly head once in awhile. Unlike her little sister, who is fairly thick-skinned (Libby hardly winces while getting her shots, afterall!), Siena often wears her heart on her sleeve. A sad thought or story can make her tear up fairly easily. On the other hand, she remains quick to smile and laugh -- the girl does not lack personality, that's for sure. She's often cracking jokes or silly rhymes or speaking in funny voices. She is sweet and smart, often using big words or phrases like "actually," "especially," "exhibit," and "speaking of which." One of her favoite books right now is about how the body works, and she'll tell you with enthusiasm while she's spinning around that the dizziness she feels results from the swooshing of water inside her ears. She's constantly working on little "projects," her favorite being sitting at the table and cutting up colored pieces of paper with her new scissors. She could seriously spend 2 straight hours doing this, which can be a nice break for mommy! :) Of course, then we're left with tiny scraps of paper everywhere that are "very special" to Siena, thus prohibiting us from throwing them away. Her room is quickly filling up with bags and bags of these very special things. Hopefully we don't have a packrat in the making...

Paper-cutting project in the works. The final products are stored in the juice container, of course.

I wish I could report that Siena is now a champion eater and sleeper, but it seems she's just not built that way. Mealtimes can still be a battle (although she's recently taken a liking to sausage, oatmeal, and sweet potatoes!), and we're still up once or twice a night for potty/snuggle requests. Otherwise, though, I don't hesitate to say that age 3 has been wonderful so far. Siena is growing up so quickly and is truly her own little person who loves to laugh and learn. We can't imagine life without you, Pumpkin!

Awesome Aunts

We had a somewhat surprise visit from our Sustar aunts Lizzy and Anne last week -- what a treat! Anne was in from Seattle helping Liz with her big move from Atlanta to Chicago, and we're lucky enough to live in between. The girls had so much fun playing, reading books, and cooking with their fun aunts. Thanks for the visit, Anne and Lizzy! We can't wait to see you again sometime soon.

Anne lends a hand in the girls' kitchen.

A morning at the playground. The temperatures have been unseasonably warm this winter and we're loving every minute! Libby was thrilled to have Aunt Lizzy help her on the swings (her favorite playground activity).

Auntie Anne loves to swing, too. She has the best playgrounds near her house in Seattle.

Hooray for the playground!

Working together on some yummy cornbread.

Sick Kiddos

The girls are FINALLY getting over what have been 6+ weeks of rotating illnesses, starting with Libby's croup right after Christmas, then GI bugs, followed by horrible colds/coughs/ear infections which Libby is now finishing up. Siena and Libby have been troopers throughout, remaining in relatively good spirits during the day and taking their medicine with enthusiasm. Let's hope everyone stays healthy for awhile now!