Our Trip to Highland

Well we finally decided it was time to take a trip down to Highland. No one from Chuck's family has met the babies yet except for Uncle Frog and Aunt Christie. So we decided to pack up the mini and head down. Surprisingly the ride down was smooth with only one stop. The ride back was even better. All the kids slept the whole way and we didn't have to stop once! Since we hadn't been there since summer, we finally got to celebrate Christmas with them. It was fun unwrapping gifts in Christmas paper considering it was in the 50's on Saturday there. Oh well, everyone had fun and it was great to see everyone again. Gracie even got a big sis present from Papa and Grandma-twins! A boy and a girl. Of course she named them "Presley" and "Evie."

Papa sure had fun meeting his new grandkids. He even gave them the book "The Night Before Christmas" and it is his voice reading it to them! They are the new books that Hallmark had out this year. Pretty cool!

Gracie got to open Presley and Evie's presents too. Evie got a puppy and Presley got a guitar.

Gracie got a puppy complete with bag and leash and even some fun outfits to dress her up in.

Grandma Vicky had fun holding Presley. He even slept on her shoulder for the longest time.

Gracie had fun goofing around with Daddy.



Here is Gracie with Maddie and Drake. Too bad they weren't there longer. They played good together.





The twins were a big hit though. Especially in their nametag outfits.




Aunt Julie having fun with Presley.




Baby Peyton was there too. What a happy baby she is!




Gracie had lots of fun with Chuck's cousin's daughter, Sydney. They put on necklaces and grabbed purses and announced to everyone that they were going shopping!




Aunt Patti had fun rocking Presley.





Aunt Barb and cousin Tara met the babies too.






And Uncle Steve really liked Evie.






And Gracie even got to play with Daddy's friend Ryan's kids, Bailey and Riley.





And even Presley and Evie met a new friend, baby Aurora. What a great trip we had! So many new faces.

Make New Friends But Keep the Old

Yesterday, my good friend Carolyn came over. Carolyn and I have been friends since first grade at St. Mary's. We were also in Girl Scouts together for 12 years! (Which I am sure that someday we will be Girl Scout leaders ourselves). Anyways, she has a 3 year old daughter named Peyton and a new baby girl, Reagan. We don't see each other very often but do catch up on the phone every couple of months. Well we decided it was time to get together since Gracie and Peyton hadn't seen each other since Gracie was a baby. They hit it off well. They both like Disney Princesses so they had that in common right away. Gracie was good and shared her toys and let Peyton try on her clothes even! Then they got the bright idea to torment my poor Millie. They got out the Bumbo seats, sat in them and stared up at Millie who was not about to come down!

They gave up eventually and decided to play with their "babies" instead.

What a great playdate. Thanks for coming Carolyn. We can't wait to do it again!

Our Trip to the Aquarium

Since winter seems very long, we got out of the house for once and decided to head to the Shedd Aquarium. Gracie was super excited! It was the twins first trip anywhere really besides the mall so we packed up the minivan, picked up Grandpa (one person per child was necessary) and headed up to Chicago. Even though we hit traffic, we got there when they opened. To our surprise it was free so it was pretty packed. Some old lady next to me in line accused me of running over her feet with my "cart". Whatever old bag! Anways, Gracie couldn't wait to head in and see all the fishies! Preley was even a little impressed with the big tank they have in the middle.

Gracie had fun watching the penguins.

And she had a blast climbing and playing on the rocks and "frozen ice".

And of course everyone wants to live in an yellow submarine.



We even saw beluga whales. Here is the mommy whale with her baby.



The babies were good. They had too much fun though and conked out. Miss Evie was out first.



followed by Mr. Presley.



Even though it was packed, we still had fun and Gracie saw lots of fish!

It's fun being a family of five but man is it hard to go anywhere!

I needed a nap after this production!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day! Daddy had to work so mommy spent the day with her 3 little valentine's. Gracie made cupcakes and cards for her brother and sister.

3 months old!

Today my babies, Presley and Evie are 3 months old! I can't believe how fast the time is flying. They are smiling, cooing and playing. Soon they will be starting solid food, rolling over (which Presley is on the brink of), and sitting up. While I am excited for them to get older and do more things, I am also sad that they are growing so fast!

Messy Masterpieces

On Saturdays, Gracie takes a class called "Messy Masterpieces." She LOVES it! She got into the whole making crafts thing from the library. We have been going to Busy Bees for like a year now and they always have a theme every week where they read some books, sing some songs, and of course, make a craft. We even make crafts at home. Well when I saw this class, I had to sign her up. This particular class actually meets on Saturdays, which is good for when I go back to work. Damn those stay-at-home-moms that have tons of classes to choose from that meet during the week. We take an ABC class on Fridays but not for much longer. Anyways, that's another story. This class is fun. Each time, the kids meet on the circle rug and the teacher goes over the instructions for the crafts that they will me making that day. There are stations set up around the room and the kids move at their own pace and have fun. It really is messy too. We bought Gracie her own smock for that reason.


Painting is fun for Gracie as we don't do it at home because it is so messy. So painting at this class is awesome for her!

They always have a cutting station too. I am trying to teach her how to use scissors. It's a little tricky.

And of course, Gracie's favorite, glue! Here she is making Valentine cards for Grandma and Grandpa.


And already a scrapbooker using those punches!

And there is always an easel with some coloring. Today they got to color with chalk!

Painting again, but this time with racecars! The wheels on the cars have different designs on them. She had a race with Daddy.

And this was my favorite. We painted her hands and put them on a heart. I will save this masterpiece forever!

And of course, we have to clean up and wash our hands because it was a messy morning!