Birthday Girls - Pampering and Ear Piercing

Crystall and I had promised the girls that we would take them to get their fingernails and toenails painted for their birthday. Camryn's birthday is the first of June and Ella's is at the end of June, although Ella is a year older. So...we finally managed to get around to taking them to Sweet & Sassy in late July...better late than never!!! They both thought they were really big and sat together and grinned the whole time. While we were there Ella decided to get her ears pierced. We finally got the green light from Daddy about 2 months ago, but she had decided against doing it as soon as we told her she could (imagine that!). However, once she saw the 'throne' you get to sit on to get them pierced she started to talk about it and once she took a look at all the sparkling earrings, she was sold! We should probably be concerned that it was the "bling" that convinced her... She got a little scared while they were marking her ears and Camryn kept telling her "It's ok, Ella! It's ok!" (Camryn had hers done last year). Once the initial shock was over they handed her a mirror and she was all smiles...not a tear shed! It was a fun day for both of them and hopefully we'll be able to make it a tradition. BTW, yes they are dressed alike....and no, it was not intentional. They both happen to have the same outfit and we didn't know we had dressed them alike until we were both on our way...it did make for some cute pictures though!

Ella's Princess Castle Bed

My dad made Ella a new bed that is made to look like a castle. It is a loft bed with a little playhouse area underneath. He made it out of glass bricks and it really turned out beautiful. We put Ella's chair and all of her Bitty Baby furniture inside the playhouse. She didn't see it (or even know about it) until it was all set up. When she saw it she said, "Oh, Wow!" She went in and out of the door and up and down the ladder over and over again. She kept giggling and was grinning from ear to ear. It's the perfect bed for a princess! :-) Thanks Two-Daddy!!!

Connor & Clara - Then (2001) & Now (2009)

A Week at the Beach - Dauphin Island

Last week the kids and I went and spent the week on Dauphin Island with my Aunt Jamie and Clara. It was a nice relaxed week. The kids had fun swimming in the ocean and riding the waves. Ella learned to swim while we were there (there is a video below) and Connor and Clara caught about 300 fish with their nets. We went down to the west end of the island to their public beach one day so Connor and Clara could use their boogie boards and hit the waves...Ella picked that day to have a complete meltdown on the beach and ended up falling asleep in the sand...she layed there for almost an hour and a half and slept. Thankfully the nap did a great deal to improve her mood.

The last day we were there we went to the Estuarium. Connor took a field trip there last October and he wanted to go back. He's been to Sea World and the Atlanta aquarium in the past year and he likes the Dauphin Island Estuarium the best...go figure. At least it's closer and cheaper ($3.00!) than the other two.

Look who can swim!!!

Last week we went to the beach with my Aunt Jamie. Ella saw me dive in the pool one day and told me she wanted to jump in like that too. I showed her how and she kept doing it over and over. A little while later I asked her if she wanted to jump in without her swimmy...she jumped right in and started swimming (dog paddling). I couldn't believe it!!! We've spent who knows how much money for swim lessons (with little to no results) and after 4 straight days in the ocean and pool she just took off! The first video is of her diving...the second is of her swimming. Please forgive my obnoxious, little kid voice, hick-sounding commentary...you may want to turn the sound down! :-)

Happy 4th of July!!!