Birthday week!

As I'm sure most of you know, Elizabeth's birthday (4/30) fell right in between Anna (4/27) and Abby's (5/2) birthdays. Including Grandma (4/21) we have an amazing week of celebrations. Grandma & Grandpa arrived on 4/24 to await the arrival of the new baby. We surprised Grandma with a little party that night:

 

 

On Saturday we celebrated Anna's birthday. We started the day off going to a concert of Anna's favorite musician - Justin Roberts. For dinner we had her favorite pasta and rolls followed by a new cake recipe that she chose from a cookbook: Boston Creme Pie, which she helped Mommy make.

Then Elizabeth perfectly timed her debut by arriving on 4/30 so Mommy and Daddy could be home on 5/2 to celebrate Abby's b-day. Abby's dinner included many of her favorites - hot dog, guacamole, and watermelon. For dessert she also got a new cake that she picked out from a cookbook: Cherry Berries on a Cloud, which she helped Nana & Grandma make.

 

 

Happy Birthday to Grandma, Anna, Abby, and Elizabeth! We are looking forward to years of April/ May super celebrations!!!!

Swing Set!

Today Anna & Abby came home from a trip out to breakfast and the grocery store to find a surprise in their backyard:

Yes, I did install it on my own while taking care of Elizabeth...or maybe the company installed it :)

Welcome Elizabeth Grace!

At 6:30 am on Tuesday, April 30th, Elizabeth Grace was born! We couldn't be happier to welcome her to our family. Anna, Abby, Grandma, Grandpa, and Nana all visited us at the hospital. We came home on Thursday in time for Elizabeth to help us celebrate Abby's 3rd birthday. Elizabeth is doing great as she is eating well, sleeping well, and has already started gaining back weight. She is very sweet and cuddlely. She loves to be held and does not like to get her diaper changed, clothes changed, or checked by doctors. Anna and Abby are already great big sisters. They both love to snuggle and kiss her, help to burp her after feedings, help Mommy by getting things, and have been working on her first year baby calendar.

at 8 lbs. and almost 13 oz., she's the "biggest" sister 

a family of 5! 

 ready to go home!

Daddy's girl :)

Circus!

A little over a week ago we took the girls to the circus. Anna liked the trapeze and acrobats best and Abby liked the dog show best. Mommy & Daddy loved it too!

 

Soccer!

Anna is playing soccer again this spring and once again Matt is coaching the team. They both have been loving their weekly soccer practices. Most of the same girls are on the team, which is fun for everyone as we're able to get to know the girls and families better. Here's to a great season!

book worms

On Monday we had a playdate with Mia & Isabel. All 4 girls have many things in common. For sure one of them is they all love books!

Happy Birthday, Anna!

On Sunday we had an early birthday celebration for Anna with her friends at Pump It Up - an indoor bouncing gym not too far from us. Anna was a big part of planning this party. She chose the location last fall after attending her friend's (Elise) party at the same location. She picked out the goody bags and everything to stuff in them. Of course she and Abby helped me stuff them. She requested vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting and sprinkles for all her guests and her own small cake made the same way. Once again, she and Abby helped me make all of that too. She picked out all the snacks: goldfish, pretzels, veggie fries, and freeze dried strawberries - on a shopping trip with Daddy. And I think she put them in her own cart. And finally, she composed the guest list. I suppose years from now all of this won't seem like a big deal, but this year it was a big deal. I guess because it was the first time she did most of the planning herself.

Everyday last week she asked how many days it was until her party. At the party it was hard to catch her without a smile on her face - which meant it was hard to catch Mommy or Daddy without a smile on their faces too.

The birthday girl!

Abby is pretty excited too :)

 leading her friends into the first bounce room

 posing with her guests

 

 

At the end of the day she said the best part of her party was eating her cake!

passing out goody bags

Happy Birthday Anna! This has been an amazing year watching grow from age 4 to age 5 :) You bring so much joy to our family - thank you :)