spring is in the air! thank goodness! i am learning that spring is probably my favorite season. i always thought summer was my favorite season. but as the years go by, i am realizing that spring is actually my favorite. it's so refreshing, the spring air. after all the cold, gray, dreary days of winter in indiana. spring is so uplifting! it's like an instant energy and mood booster for me! i love it. and i think i realize that even more now that i have kids. they also LOVE to be outside. and it's so nice to be able to go outside and play with my girls. especially after being stuck inside during the cold winter months.

we went to the park not once, but twice today! it was awesome! the weather could not have been more beautiful. it was one of those days where i just wanted to take as many deep breaths of fresh air as i could and soak up as much of the spring air as possible! anyway...i got some really cute pics of the girls outside today. liv is big enough to sit in the baby swing at the park now. and she loved it! she grinned from ear to ear the entire time she was in there! anyway, here are those pictures.

mady mastered the BIG spiral slide at the park today. amazing what a difference a few months can make. in the fall she didn't quite have the trunk control to make it down this slide upright! today, she did it at least 52 times. all by herself!

here is mady pointing out the letters of the alphabet. she is doing so well with her letters now! she can recognize and name accurately several letters of the alphabet, and a couple numbers too!

here is mady watching an airplane. she tells me very confidently that this plane was going to the "A-port!"

olivia's first experience in the swing was a hit! she could not have been a happier baby!

we just got back from the park, and i got this picture of madyson, which i think is beautiful!

liv is also starting to crawl now. just a few feet at a time. but it won't be long before she is across the room...and then across the house! i say this all the time, but i just can't believe how big my baby is getting!

and this is just a funny picture i took of liv...looks like she's coming to eat the camera!

and this one is from a few weeks ago, but so cute i had to put it in! how can you not love this face?!

not too much news really. we have just been busy enjoying the warmer days of spring! i hope this weather continues! and i think the girls hope so too!

love,

shannon

do you ever feel like you're juggling? i'm not a juggler. i've never been able to master the art of juggling. yet at times in my life, i feel like i'm doing exactly that. sometimes i feel like i'm just juggling all these plates up in the air. and if i stop for a second, they might all come crashing down. and then i'd have to pick up all the pieces! and Lord knows i do NOT need one more mess to clean up! i have plenty of those, courtesy of our beautiful babies! at any rate, recent weeks have seemed somewhat like one of these juggling acts. i'm not sure why sometimes i feel so stressed for time and overwhelmed, and why other times, i am able to handle it all and still manage to find a little free time on my hands. but that is all i can offer as an explanation for my absence from blogging. juggling. i've been juggling. :)

this weekend, we are in columbus, ohio, visiting some of our best friends, the ganims! tony, laura and their son eli. eli was born just a few weeks before olivia, so they will have a great time playing together! astro is here attending a continuing education course with tony, so the girls and i tagged along for a little getaway from reality. and a break from juggling :) today, i am enjoying naptime. both girls are napping. and i am not at home, so i do not have to rush around to get a million things done while the girls sleep. naptime is free time for me today! free time is a luxury i rarely get at this point in my life. aaahhhhh. how sweet it is!

i will try to post soon with some new pictures, perhaps after our weekend away. until then, happy weekend!

and i must post a statement of gratitude...and apology...to my wonderful husband. in the midst of all this juggling, i sometimes go temporarily insane. i swear, i lose my mind. i lose all sense of reason, and the smallest thing is likely to set me off. which really isn't in my normal nature. and he takes it like a trooper. just offers to help. asks what he can do to help make me less stressed. thanks, babe. for being my hero. i love you!

love,
shannon

i have never thought mady and liv look alike. but out of curiosity, i was looking back at some old pictures of mady when she was liv's age. these are pictures of the girls, both 7 months old at the time the pictures were taken. if i look at these pictures, side by side, and cover up liv's hair, i now think they look alike! i definitely see a resemblance!

what do you think? do they look like sisters?

love,

shannon

this is what we call a mady patty pie. it's delicious! nothing sweeter!

because she told me yesterday that olivia is her best friend.

she sings as loud as she can every chance she gets. seriously, ALL the time.

she gave both matt and i unsolicited leg hugs last night...and topped it off with a kiss.

she always comes running full speed ahead with arms wide open when matt or i get home from work.

she runs around with no pants on for a better part of most evenings.

she has a stuffed monkey that she named "april."

and that great big grin and big ol' eyes warm my heart everytime!

i'll take at least a million servings of mady patty pie please!

love,

shannon

liv has a sinus infection. again. that means...another trip to the doc. another round of antibiotics. struggling to get her to eat. or drink her bottle. constant snuggling. praying for her to feel better, because it hurts our hearts to see her so miserable and sad. lots and lots of tlc. lots. a late night trip to walmart to buy a new warm mist humidifier because our last one died but we will do what it takes to help her sleep. lots more snuggling. and tlc.

our little trooper. she doesn't feel good. but she stays mostly happy. and still wants to play. she's learning to wave. it's precious. here she is...at 6:27 this morning, as you can see on the clock in the background. trying to wave like a champ. even though she doesn't feel good. and it's early in the morning. cuz she stays mostly happy. and cuz mom wanted to take a video. what a trooper.

we are so blessed. our girls are our angels. truly. blessed.

love

shannon

let it snow?! no thank you! the truth is, i do not like snow. at all. not even a little. it's this time of the year that i REALLY miss florida! but despite the little white flakes falling from the sky (friggin' snow!), it's been a good week for us! we've gotten to spend lots of time together, and playing with the neighbors. we also got olivia's 6 month pictures taken last weekend. yes, we know she is actually 7 months old now...we intended to get them done a month ago...oops! we should have those back in a week or two, and i can't wait! but in the meantime, here are a few good shots i've gotten over the past week. check out that grin! i'm addicted!

i swear she gets cuter by the minute, if that's even possible!

love

shannon

p.s. don't you just wanna smoosh all those rolls of chub? baby chub is the best!

eating dinner together. as a family. at the table.

has always been something i want to do with my children.

i think it's so important for a family to stay connected.

to communicate. to talk to each other. about things on our minds.

or about nothing in particular.

just to enjoy each other's company. to be together.

it's important. it's simple.

tonight, all 4 of us got to eat dinner together. at the table!

it's the first time olivia has been at the table with us.

normally, she is in her highchair, which doesn't fit at the table. so i have always felt guilty that she has been separated from the rest of us while we all sit down and eat together. but she is finally big enough that we could put her in the booster chair at the table! she got to sit at the table with us while we ate! i could not be happier about it! it warms my heart! all 4 of us.

matt, madyson, olivia, and i.

sat at the table together tonight.

*sigh*

life is good.

love,

shannon