First Hair Cut

Yes, this post is for Calla, not for Hannah.  It only took 4 years for Calla to have enough hair to take to get cut.  Our first attempt, about a year ago, was a disaster, with Calla screaming and crying.  I have been trimming it ever since.  But it was getting to be time when she needed a nicer cut than I could provide.  This time she was ready and we went to our neighbor to get it cut.  Calla had a blast and was all smiles.  You can't really see much of a difference, we could "not touch the princess hair" according to Calla.  But it was all trimmed and we had fun!

Happy Birthday!

It is hard to believe that my baby turned 2 on June 7th!  Time has flown by and it is hard to imagine our life without little Hannah.  She has her own personality and keeps us all on our toes.  She moved into her toddler bed the week before her birthday because she does not like her crib or the pack-n-play and we are preparing for some traveling this summer.  So far she likes her new bed, but is very different from Calla.  It took Calla over 6 months to realize she could get out of her toddler bed, Hannah pounded on her door at 5:00 her first morning in the bed.  Hannah has also introduced us to a new reality.  Sleeping in at our house means Hannah slept until 6am. Hannah has the most wonderful laugh and makes me grin from ear to ear!  She LOVES animals and her "buggies" collection.  She will play pretend on the floor as she talked to herself and all her animals.   

 Celebrating her birthday at school!  Say "Cheese"

It is cake time yet?  We had a few friends over for a BBQ, cake and ice cream for her birthday.  It was a blast.  Especially when Hannah and her friend Airlie chased each other around the house laughing.   

 Hannah has also mastered climbing into the play structure, though not climbing down.  You have to be ready, because when she wants down and you walk over she will just throw herself into your arms.  Nothing like the trusting heart of a young child!

YUM, strawberries and cake!  Hannah loves strawberries, the 8 plants we planted earlier this spring are producing lots of berries and we go on berry hunts every night after dinner.  She is always asking for more!

Hannah got a few presents, including a doodle board, just like her big sister for the car, a new back pack and a Fisher Price farm set!

Happy Birthday to my beautiful, fun, and crazy little girl!  I look forward to our many adventures together!

Family Time Rocks!

We had a wonderful weekend.  We were all together for 5 days!  Scott and I finished up some much needed yard work, we ate and drank with friends, and spent time as a family!  Today we finished this GREAT family weekend with a hike along the East Fork of the McKenzie River.   Calla hike 2 miles all by herself, and it was more up hill than we thought it would be.  She was proud to tell everyone she hiked 2 miles, crossed two bridges, and had lots of fun.  Hannah also had a blast riding on Mommy and Daddy's backs.  The girls threw rocks and sticks in the streams and we all had fun.  There is nothing better than walking behind Calla and seeing her run and skip through the forest.  Calla also loves rivers.  She almost cried when we left the Willamette River at the Hop Yard on Saturday.  She told me she "loved the river, it made her happy and she was so sad to leave it".  Then today she again told us how much she loved the river and wants to take care of it. Nothing could make me happier and prouder as a parent.  Enjoy some great pictures of our hike.

A Day at the Beach

I took the girls to the Newport Aquarium on Sunday.  Hannah loved the animals.  Calla has always had an enthusiastic, but short attention span at each exhibit, while Hannah is becoming quite an observer.  She just looks, points, and smiles.  

The play area was almost as popular as the sea lions.  The girls climbed and laughed.

Hannah making friends with a turtle before getting on.  

Calla climbs right on.

I even got a rare picture of the two girls together, smiling.

We are in the monkey see monkey do phase.  Calla climbs, Hannah climbs.  Calla slides, Hannah slides.  

At the beach Calla was her usual enthusiastic self, running and diving on the sand.  She loves the back so much, I can't wait for San Diego this summer with the Shaff Family.

Hannah was a little more tentative.  But when she warmed up, she was ready to rumble!

Hannah ended up chasing Calla all over the beach trying to put sand on her head.  It was so funny and they had a great time!

A Video from the past

Calla's Uncle Steve made this video for her first birthday.  Scott's parent's just found it and sent it out again.  I am not sure if it ever got posted the first time around.  Enjoy!

Mother's Day Weekend

What a great weekend.  Scott was home all weekend and we had a great time hanging out as a family!  Saturday morning we hit the Corvallis Farmers Market and the downtown fountain was in full swing.  We brought the girls swimming suites (learned from last year) and they both had a blast.  Calla was her usual enthusiastic self, she does everything with such life it is inspiring.  

We also got to enjoy some first of the season strawberries.  We the girls ate up everything we bought.  YUM!  They should be very happy by the end of the summer when our 8 strawberry plants start producing.  

While everyone napped on Saturday I got our garden planted.  This is our first garden in the house.  We have been busy raising kids and have not had the time or energy to try a garden.  We are still doing a CSA this year, but we planted melons, squash, hot peppers, a few tomatoes, broccoli, and fennel.  It be a great addition to our CSA and I love teaching Calla and Hannah about planting and growing food.

Sunday was a great day at home!  It was hot, upper 80's, so we filled up the kiddy pool and turned on the sprinkler.  After a wonderful dinner of halibut we roasted marshmallows.  Calla's favorite part of the day.  Hannah has already eaten hers in this picture, and Calla is still savoring hers. Hannah needs to learn to be a little slower in her enjoyment of treats.     

A beautiful evening, in our beautiful yard, to end a very wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

Fun in the Sun!

The girls and I needed to get out of the house for a little while today.  So we decided on Frozen Yogurt (with sprinkles).  The girls had a blast with their little treats.  You can see from the picture below how intent they are in getting every drop from their bowls.  

After frozen yogurt we headed to Wild Cat Park.  It was a perfect afternoon for the park.  It is a great mix of big and little kid activities and both kids had a blast!  Call fell in love with this big red swing!

Hannah was also into the swing, and kept making OHH faces as I pushed her higher and higher. 

Hannah also loved the slide.  She was happy to just go up and down over and over again by herself.  At the end she decided she wanted to be like a big kid and climb up the slide.  She did not make it very far, but had a big smile!

The kids had a great time together all day and as always made me smile and laugh!