First Scar

Libby had her own inaugural trip to the ER recently after falling and hitting her chin on a chair at Siena's dance class. Thankfully she just required some glue (instead of stitches), and was a trooper for the doctor and nurses. I'm sure this is the first of many battle scars to come -- the girl is tough!

Otherwise, our Libby has entered that amazing stage of toddlerhood when her verbal skills really begin to shine. She's speaking in 2-3 word phrases consistently now and seems to reveal a new word or phrase every day. My recent favorites are "More green milk!" on St. Patrick's Day and "Come out, Baby!" when talking to my belly. She also LOVES to sing along to her favorite songs which include ABC's, Happy Birthday, and Baby Beluga. Our baby is growing up fast!

Easter 2012

I've been putting off this Easter post and I apologize -- for some reason Blogger has been giving me trouble with posting certain photos, and to be honest I just don't have the time or patience to deal with fixing it! I have two napping girls right now so hopefully I can make it work...

It was a gorgeous Easter this year, with warm weather and sunny skies. We enjoyed a great outdoor mass at the Shrine with Winnie and Picky before heading to Aunt Dede's for a yummy brunch and Easter egg hunt. The girls' second cousins Leah and Campbell were also there to add to the fun! Siena has been asking "How many days until Easter?" since the day after Christmas, so it was quite the celebration (she declared awhile back that Easter was her favorite holiday because pink is an Easter color). Thanks for the goodies, Easter Bunny!

Libby examines her Easter basket loot



A new Max and Ruby book.  Hooray!

The kiddie table.  Libby cracks me up -- this is
her typical expression when you ask her to smile

The hunt is on! 

Found one!  Now what could be inside?

Siena and her TWO Easter baskets

Poor little Campbell wasn't feeling well today

Siena and Leah enjoying their bubble treasures...

... while Libby blows her own bubbles with Picky
(her favorite activity!)

Happy Easter from the Sustars!

Preparing for Easter

Easter activities get more fun every year with these two! Here are some fun shots of our adventures in egg dyeing...

... and baking Easter cookies with Winnie!

The Beach! The Beach!

I apologize for the delay in posting these photos -- between Winnie's camera and mine, we had quite the haul of pictures to sort through!  Below is a brief sampling.  We had a WONDERFUL time down at Gulf Shores with Winnie, Picky, and the doggies. It was the girls' first trip to the beach and didn't disappoint -- definitely the perfect vacation with little ones, especially with the sand and surf at your doorstep! No additional entertainment needed. The weather was beautiful and warm, our only thunderstorms coming at night and in the early morning. It was a trip worth repeating, for sure.

Millie had a great time chasing balls on the beach,
but the sand and saltwater took some getting used to!



Smiling with Siena and the beautifully decorated
"birthday cake" she crafted for me



Cleaning the sand off was as much fun as playing in the waves

Self portrait at 24 weeks pregnant. :)



I hear the ocean, Mommy!



When I'm not having fun in the waves,
I like to put stickers on my belly...

... and decorate Mommy's growing belly while I'm at it



Libby loved the surf...



... while Siena prefered the sand



Poor Siena sustained a nasty black eye just before our trip after
jumping face-first into her desk.  What a shiner! 

Feeling the waves on her toes for the first time was such a thrill

Wave jumping with Daddy!

Burying Daddy, one tiny jar of sand at a time

Kisses for what's left of Daddy

Our little cutie pie

We had a fun tour of Fort Morgan on our last day at the beach

The whole gang enjoyed the fort, including the dogs

beach beauties

joy joy

and more joy



Sunset photos to conclude our amazing trip... 
Soon we'll be a family of FIVE!



The fam!  Thanks so much for joining us, Winnie and Picky!





Farewell, Wah Wah Wah

We bid a fond farewell to Libby's pacifier two days ago, an event much anticipated by everyone in the family. I was so proud of her as we had our pre-farewell chat -- I explained that the pacifier was going bye-bye, that it was going to be taken up to the babies in heaven on some balloons because Libby is a BIG GIRL now. My brave Little Libby just nodded with tear-filled eyes and a quivering lip and said, "okay." Since then, she's been a real trooper and has hardly mentioned it. Every time she brings it up she just says, "wah wah wah up up up!" and claps her hands when we remind her what a big girl she is now.

Unfortunately, the pacifier didn't quite make it all the way up to the babies in heaven...  It got caught en route in our huge oak tree in the front yard.  Luckily we're having the tree removed next week (it's dying, sadly), so hopefully the girls won't notice the balloons between now and then.

The real challenge since this change has been Libby's naptime. She's been a screaming mess during naps for two days in a row now, and I finally had to put her in her crib to cry herself to sleep (she usually sleeps on a mattress on the floor with one of us snuggling her to sleep). I felt awful about it and practically broke down myself hearing her screams, but it seemed the only way to get her to sleep without enduring endless kicks to my growing belly. So I suppose there are two milestones to note -- loss of the pacifier AND returning to the crib. Poor baby. Here's hoping she figures out the new sleeping arrangement quickly!

Sleeping Beauties

I'm always thinking when I put the girls to sleep that I need to capture their sweet sleeping faces, but there's rarely a camera around in the moment. Luckily I was able to get some good shots during naptime at the beach (I'll post the rest of those photos soon, I promise!). Ahhh, sleep...