Better than a doll

I was washing dishes after dinner last night, and I heard Adrianna say, "Look at my doll, Mom!" I casually glanced at her pushing the stroller that she frequently pushes Elmo in. I had to look twice to see if my eyes were deceiving me. Little Natalie was happy as a clam, giggling as her big sister pushed her throughout the house. Yes, Nate was supervising the whole affair. :)

Popeye

My sweet Natalie now has a new "face" that she puts on when I point the camera at her. I'm guessing she learned it from her older sister. ;)

Trip to Indy

Last week Nate was out of town. I am so blessed to have my parents living only 5 hours away. And they graciously offer to let me and the girls come down and hang out with them while he's gone. I hate it when Nate's gone, so I usually take them up on their offer. ;) We had a fun, relaxing week hanging out and playing with the girls. Here are some pictures of our trip (My mom somehow evaded all my pictures this time!). It was so special to have my Grandpa Helland visit while we were there. It was his first time meeting Natalie, and she thoroughly enjoyed having him carry her around everywhere. And Adrianna was fascinated by the cool pictures he could draw for her. We enjoyed spending time with my brother Philip and his fiance Alissa. I am thrilled beyond words that I get to have Alissa as my sister-in-law - she is a perfect fit to our family and we all love her! They asked Adrianna if she would be the flower girl in their wedding. Of course Adrianna had no clue what that was, but it sounded fun. The next day I told her to tell Auntie Sue what she was going to do in Philip's wedding. She replied, "I'm going to be a flower garden!!!" :) Adrianna and my dad loved playing together. He even took her to her favorite car wash (it has all the Sesame Street characters there!) even though it wasn't cheap. :) They had their own little greeting for each other as you can see in the picture! {Sorry about the crazy lay-out of these pictures - I have no clue what I'm doing!}

Fun in the Tub!

Mother's Day

My sweet husband and girls gave me a great Mother's Day weekend. Nate took me out to Red Lobster on a date Saturday night - he even got me their Dream Chocolate Cake for dessert (way better than all the seafood!). On Sunday morning Adrianna ran into the kitchen yelling, "Happy Anniversary . . . happy Valentine's . . . mother's day!" And they surprised me with a full length mirror for my bedroom which I have been wanting for a few months now (I get quite a complex going out not having seen any part of my outfit below the neck!). I am thankful beyond words for my full-time job as a mommy. My two girls each bring me such joy and delight. Adrianna constantly entertains me, challenges me to be on my toes, makes me laugh and reminds me what it was like to be a little girl. She came to me a few times in the past week and asked for my forgiveness for something she had done, unprompted by anyone. I am thankful for her sensitive heart. And Natalie melts my heart each time I see her dimpled smile. She's my little peanut - I don't think I ever want her to get bigger. :) Most of all I thank God for a sweet, understanding husband who works hard so I can be home with our girls. God is good!