Summer Review

I'm trying to play catch up on my blog - mainly to share with family and to have as my own virtual scrapbook - and I figure better late than never, right?!?  This summer was busy, in an already busy season of life.  We moved out of our old house on May 1st and didn't move into the new house until August 1st, which meant we spent this summer on the move - literally.  We stayed local for the first 6 weeks, moving from Airbnb to Airbnb.  We were lucky that all of our rentals were either right at Chick's beach or in the Outer Banks, so we got to kick off Summer 2018 with a bang.  Lots of beach days, evening walks at the beach, etc. and it was so nice.  Those first couple weeks of moving around really felt like we were on vacation.  We also tried to do all of our favorite summer time activities in a short amount of time, since we knew we would spend a lot of the summer in Pittsburgh at my parents house.  We went to Busch Gardens, botanical gardens, the pool, and had as many playdates with our little buddies as possible.  During this time, we also had a lot to celebrate!  Our favorite little man turned one and we spent a long weekend in Sandbridge celebrating with family and friends.  We also celebrated my birthday, Mother's Day, and Eric and I's 6th anniversary.  Towards the end of May, we packed up our stuff and had our 2nd annual Riverwalk vacation in the Outer Banks.  We rented a beach house together and had so much fun with our buddies hanging on the beach and the pool during the day and playing games and relaxing at night.  

Another highlight of the summer was our little ballerina had her first recital.  She danced her little heart out to "The Good Ship Lollipop" and made her mommy proud as she knew every single step.  It was so stinkin' cute!   Grandma came into town to watch her recital and we had a surprise visit from Brianna, so Addie was a happy girl to say the least.  After her recital, she was spoiled with flowers and gifts and a yummy brunch before we were on our way to Pittsburgh until our house was finished.

For the next 6 weeks of summer we stayed at Grandma and Pap's house in Pittsburgh.  We kicked off our stay with my cousin Anne and Dave's wedding.  Noah was the most handsome ring bearer I've ever seen and the girls killed it in their role as the flower girls.  After the ceremony, we all danced the night away at the reception and the girls still ask regularly when they can go to another wedding :)

We played tourists for the month of July in the Burgh!  We took advantage of being in a new city and explored the heck out of it while we were there.  We went places that I grew up going to as a kid, Scott pool, the zoo, the SSJ festival, Station Square, Kennywood, and the castle park.  We tried out some new spots too including the water steps, Just Ducky tour, and the Living Treasures Animal Park.  In between all of our outtings, we also had a lot of things to celebrate.  We celebrated the 4th of July with a huge picnic at Grandma's house, Grandma's birthday with a party planned by Addie and Bella, and an early surprise party for cousin Bryan with the most fun Minute to Win in games.  We got to spend lots of time with our Pittsburgh and Ohio family, as well as our close friends in Pittsburgh, which was amazing!

We FINALLY closed on our new house on July 31st and we were beyond excited to finally be HOME!  Moving with 3 little ones in no joke, even I underestimated how much work it was, but we did it.  Eric and I survived our summer on the move with our kids and with the help of some of our amazing friends survived moving day.  We are beach people at heart, but this summer moving in to our dream house in the most amazing neighborhood is the highlight this year!  It sure does feel good to be home :)

We spent a whole 10 days in our new home before we were on the go again haha!  Our annual OBX family vacation was in August.  The night before we left for vacation we celebrated our Bella bean's 3rd birthday, Elmo style.  Then we woke up bright and early the next morning and we were off to the beach!  We had the best weather this year, which meant you could find us on the beach or in the pool from sunrise to sunset and it was amazing!  I'm going to add a separate post on all of our fun vacation memories, so stay tuned for that... 

We returned from vacation with a few more weeks left of summer.  We tried our best to live it up between all of the unpacking and house to-do's and I think we were successful.  We did all of our favorite things, went to the beach and pool, Busch Gardens, the botanical gardens, and had the most amazing "Bye Bye Summer" play date with our buddies.  We said goodbye to summer with our friends and again with our family when Eric's cousin and family and the Hazelwoods came into town for Labor Day.  

Summer 2018, that's a wrap!  Until next year...

Back to School 2018

We started back to school this year with a whole lot of excitement in our house.  The girls were literally jumping up and down all morning long as we got ready for their first day.  This year, Addie is in the Pandas class and Bella is in the Owls class like Addie was in last year.  They are both going 3 days a week this year.  They both have some familiar faces in their class again this year, which has also added to the excitement.  I absolutely love everything about their preschool, their teachers, and the families that also belong there.  I know both of the girls are going to do great things there this year and I can't wait to watch them learn, grow, and make lots of fun memories.

I thought this was the perfect time to ask the girls some questions that would be fun to look back at for years to come. 

How old are you?
Addie: four
Bella:  "This many" (as she holds up 3 fingers)

What is your favorite color?
Addie:  Rainbow
Bella:  red

What is your favorite food to eat?
Addie:  pizza
Bella:  pancakes

What is your favorite TV show or movie?
Addie: Belle
Bella:  Elmo

What is your favorite toy?
Addie: my doggies
Bella:  Elmo

What do you want to be when you grow up?
Addie:  a vet (this is a new answer, on the first day of school it was a rainbow mermaid)
Bella:  superhero

What do you love most?
Addie:  My family
Bella:  Addie :)

I hope your back to school came with as many smiles and excitement as ours did!

Bella's 3rd Birthday Party

Bella's birthday party this year was brought to us by the letter B and the number 3!   Yes, an Elmo themed party at the birthday girl's request, complete with an Oreo cake and a dance party.  Since her birthday party was planned for about 10 days after we moved into the new house, moving and unpacking left little time for actual party planning.  Luckily, a trip to Party City and a few printable Elmo themed signed from Etsy made for the cutest Elmo themed party for our sweet girl.  I wanted to do something different with the food, I was kind of sick of the usual hamburgers/hot dogs, pizza, or Chick fil a take out, so I decided to serve "Walking Tacos" and they were a hit (and made for the easiest clean up ever!)  I made some nuggets on the side for my picky little ones and everyone was happy!  After dinner, Bella opened her presents.  Grandma and Pap got her a new, red (her favorite color) Radio Flyer tricycle and it even had Oreos (her favorite snack) in her little trunk.  T got her some ribbon dancers and a disco ball, which was the perfect distraction while Daddy got her present from us set up outside.  The kids twirled and wiggled all around and we had one happy little girl!  The last surprise for our birthday girl was her very own bounce house!  She absolutely loved it (and still does!)  We spent the rest of the evening outside, the kids jumped in the bounce house and rode their bikes in the cul de sac.  We ended the night singing happy birthday and eating the most amazing Oreo birthday cake.  It was the perfect evening celebrating the most perfect 3 year old :)  Happy birthday Bella bean!

A Letter to my THREE year old

To our Bella bean,

Happy birthday sweet girl! I cannot believe that we've been lucky enough to call you ours for THREE whole years and we've loved every single second of it.  You are seriously one of the cutest kids ever and I'm so lucky that you call me mom or "mum" as you say it in your little British accent :)  As your birthday was approaching we loved asking you how old you were going to be and you responded with the most adorable "I'm 2 right now (as you held up 2 fingers) and I'm going to be THIS many (as you used your other hand to carefully put up that third finger."  When we asked you how old that was, the sweetest, little "I don't know" came out of your mouth :) and you went about your way.  So yes sweet girl, we are so excited to celebrate that you are "that many" and secretly hope that you always answer that question like that!

At three years old you are so KIND.  You love to stop mid-sentence to tell me that you love me.  You are the first one to offer a kiss to make a boo-boo feel better and you love to hold hands.  You have such a kind and caring heart and that makes my mommy heart so happy.

At three years old you are very CURIOUS.  You've started asking a lot of questions and your little mind is constantly working.  "What is that mom?" you ask me 100 times a day and you are trying so hard to learn how to spell and write your name.

At three years old you are BEAUTIFUL and I want you to remember that know matter how old you are.  The world is tough these days and kids can be harsh.  I want you to always appreciate how beautiful you are inside and out.  You take after your mom-mom in heaven in so many ways, not only her name, but her beauty and her heart as well and that makes us so proud.

At three years old you are a DANCING MACHINE.  You love to dance.  You love to twirl.  And as of lately you love to sing.  Aunt T got you a disco ball and ribbon twirlers for your birthday and you are obsessed.  I asked you if you wanted to do ballet this year like Addie and you responded "YES!" as you jumped up and down in excitement. 

At three years old you are an aspiring SUPERHERO and most days can be found running around the house with your cape and mask on ready to save the day!

At three years old you are so EASY GOING.  Over the last 3 months or so we've really turned your life upside down.  There's been so many changes and you've handled each one like a champ.  We moved out of the only home you've known, stayed at 10 different places over the about 3 months, moved into our new house, switched you to a big girl bed, and started potty training.  There's been little routine and a lot of chaos, but we've stuck it out together and you were amazing!

At three years old you love Mickey Mouse, Elmo, and the color red.  You love to wear anything with pockets and still have a strong love for shoes.  You love pancakes, pizza, and banana pouches.  You love to go to the beach, but are still our cautious little one who prefers to play at the edge of the water instead of diving in head first.  You are your sister's side kick and the two of you have developed such a friendship over the last couple of months.  I love to listen in on your little conversations when you are actually getting along :)  You also can't get enough of Noah and particularly shine in the big sister role whenever Addie isn't around, mimicking everything you see her doing for him in her absence.  You are a mommy's girl, but also can't get enough of your Daddy. 

At three years old you are perfectly you.  You are our Bella bean who is so tiny, but has the biggest heart.  You are so different than your big sister and little brother, you are uniquely you.  You are sweet.  You are kind.  You make your dad and I so proud to call you ours.  We love you Bella bean!  Happy birthday sweet girl.

Love,
Mom