Clean and Happy!

Tommy took these pictures one night after they girls had their bath.  I thought they looked so cute!  I love their sweet smiles and all their hair.  We are so blessed to have such cuties!

Egg Hunt & FUN Run!

We recently joined the Mom's Club in Jacksonville.  They have so many events for kids almost every day of the week and you can choose the ones you want to go to.  It sounds like the perfect way to survive Summer and Tommy's super long deployment thats coming up.  The weekend before Easter, the Mom's Club held their Easter party and egg hunt.  Now that Lyla doesn't need a stroller she loves to sit in Caroline's, especially while enjoying a doughnut!

 Caroline hunting for eggs.  We went to two egg hunts this year and Caroline just picks up one and then walks around with it.  She didn't really get it but still had a wonderful time.  

 Lyla totally gets it and had a blast running around looking for eggs.

 The famous attempt at a group picture.  Lyla had no interest in being in the picture and Caroline quickly walked away.

 And if a party and egg hunt in one day isn't enough, The Mom's Club teamed up with Stroller Strength to host the annual Fun Run!  This was Lyla's second Fun Run and Caroline's first.  Both girls did great.  They get to wear numbers and they get medals at the finish line.  

 Caroline had a very hard time waiting for the go signal.  

And she's off.  She did hold my hand most of the way, but she did great and got her medal at the end.  How great is this picture?

 Next Lyla's age group ran.  They all wanted to bend over at the start line, so cute!  

 And she's off.  Both years Lyla has taken this run very seriously and always puts her game face on and takes off!  She really enjoys it and it very proud of herself at the end.  Her Dad and I are very proud too!

 Lastly, we enjoyed some playground time, because you can't just walk by it on your way to the car without playing now can you?  This is one of her best friends Isabella.  They had so much fun on the tire swing.  We are so blessed to have wonderful friends to do these things with and such a beautiful park to play at.  

Just Another Day at the Beach!

My girls sure love the beach. Me and my mommy friends had another beach day and it was a lot of fun.  Lyla and Caroline both love playing in the waves even more than they like the sand.  It is so hard to take pictures as they are running around but here are some cute ones. I wish I could take pictures of us showering off the kids and changing their clothes at the end because that has to be really entertaining for those around us.  Yes, we strip down the girls and let them shower all the sand off before dressing them.  Some of the moms even brought soap.  It is fun to live near the beach and have such wonderful friends to share it with.  

Videos for Daddy

I sent these videos to Tommy on the ship last week to make him smile! Lyla colored Tommy so many pictures while he was gone, which is what she is telling him here. She couldn't wait to show him her pictures and give him a piece of candy when he got home. He was only on the ship for two weeks this time and when he walked through the door Lyla was screaming and jumping up and down she was so excited. Caroline reached for him and as he held her she laid her head on his shoulder and hugged him for a few minutes, which is long for Caroline.

I just think Lyla's voice is so sweet.

I truly think Caroline is saying "Hey Daddy!" In this video. I love how her voice is so much louder than Lyla's. That's pretty much how they are. They look so much alike, but are very different.

Caroline is 15 Months old on St. Patty's Day!

Caroline turned 15 months on St. Patty's Day. We haven't been to her well-baby appointment yet, so I will fill in her stats after we go, but she is doing great. She has so much personality, and I want to use this post to document some of the things she has started doing in the past month or so.

Walking - Caroline started taking a few steps at a time at 13 months old, mid-January. By the end of January she was up to 8 steps, but now she is off and running. She is very fast and loves chasing her sister and being chased by her sister. They are so cute together and have started playing so well together that I can actually take a quick shower while they play nicely in their rooms and some in my bathroom. I love to hear them giggling together. She loves walking in slippers. Lyla had some bunny slippers that Caroline loved to walk in, but they were too big, so my mom bought her some that fit her. Here she is walking in Lyla's slippers. No, its not Halloween, she was just wearing the PJ's. I figure the fashion police won't come and arrest her for her PJ's.

Eating - Caroline's favorite food still seems to be spaghetti and has been since she was less than a year old. She slurps it and shoves it in her mouth and eats more than Lyla. It's my go to meal when I want the family to sit in peace and eat. She also loves chicken pot pie, meatballs, mac & cheese, peas, grapes, bananas, strawberries, grilled cheese, pancakes, PB&J, and most any little snack like goldfish and Cheerios.

Blessing the food - Lyla always sings a blessing before we eat dinner. We normally fold our hands and close our eyes while she does. About a month ago, as soon as Caroline hears the word blessing, she folds her little hands and gets so excited when Lyla starts singing. She applauds after amen. This is such a cute thing and I'm glad she is already in the habit of saying a blessing for her food that Jesus provides.

Sleeping - Caroline is sleeping very well these days. She sleeps from about 7:30 to 7:00 most nights with one to two naps a day, depending on if we stay home in the morning. The only time she wakes and fusses is when she is teething, which she recently cut one of her molars, so we had some night waking a couple weeks ago. We would give her Tylenol or Motrin and she would go back to sleep. I thought I would never see the day that Caroline would sleep well because it took her a couple months longer than Lyla to sleep all the way through the night. Lyla was spoiling us, but we no idea back then.

Songs - Caroline's favorite songs are Happy and You Know It, because she loves clapping her hands. She recently started doing the finger motions to Itsy Bitsy Spider, and she moos when I sing Old McDonald. Its a very cute closed mouth moo. I love it! She also loves for me to sing to her. After I read her a book at night, I turn her around to face me and I sing her some songs, which always includes Jesus Loves Me and Jesus Loves the Little Children. She looks at me, pulls on my clothes and jewelry a little and sometimes she lays her little head on my chest and just hugs me, which is the most wonderful thing!

Caroline gives really good hugs and kisses to me, Tommy, and Lyla. When she kisses or hugs, she always says "Mmmmm." That's how you know you are really getting some love from Caroline, if you hear that sound.

If you want Caroline to get close to you, just hold her and walk towards a stranger. She won't cry, but she will lay her head on you, and hold so tight with her arms and feet. It is so sweet and feels so good. She's my little shy baby. She also loves when people smile at her though, and she will smile and sometimes she'll sit up and wave.

Caroline loves taking a bath. We bathe her and Lyla together now, which makes nights a lot easier. She does the cutest thing, if you say "Caroline are you ready to get out?" She's curl up and tucks her little head down because she is not ready to stop playing in the water. She also does a similar trick in her crib when I go to get her up from naps. She will stand and act like she wants me to pick her up, but when I stick my arms out, she dives back down and lays down and hides. It's a cute game, but eventually you have to grab her and get her out of there.

Lyla loves crafts, and sometimes I get brave and let Caroline join in on the fun. Here she is finger painting. Yes, she tried to eat a little, but its non-toxic, right? Oh, the things you would never say with your first child.

Spring has sprung in Florida and we always go to the playground 2 to 3 times per week, so Caroline is getting the hang of it. She walks around, tries to climb up the slides, and plays in the mulch or sand, whatever she can find.

My friends and I decided to enjoy a day at the beach last week. This was the first time I've taken Caroline since she was a tiny baby. At first, she just sat quietly and played in the sand, but then she found the water, and that's all she wanted to do. She would walk until she fell, get up again and do it all again. She also chased seagulls, and got pretty close, which mommy didn't care for. I didn't get great pictures because I was watching both girls and scared to drop my iPhone in the ocean, but here is one when we first got there.

My girls helping me sweep. The Swiffer is awesome because Lyla actually picks up dirt with it!

Caroline after her third (I think) haircut at Doodle Doos. I love how they braid her hair and get it away from her face because I love to see all of that precious little face.

Here is Caroline with Mason on a wagon ride to the playground on base. One of my friends hosted a play date for us lonely Navy wives.

On Thursday, me and my awesome friends (same as the beach crew) took our kids to the playground for playing and picnic. Look how cute they are sitting on the blanket eating. Is it just me or does Caroline look like a big kid in this picture?

Sweet sisters! Lyla is pushing Caroline in the swing.

Tommy had been on the ship and wasn't home for St. Patty's Day weekend, so we were sure to fill it with fun times with friends. We kicked it off Friday afternoon with a St. Patty's Day parade for the kids at the park. They made noise makers out of paper plates and macaroni, then marched around the track at the park. My girls look so pretty in green!

My friend Martha Stewart, I mean Sarah, made the most fabulous green cake and brought it to the park for the kids to eat after the parade.

I wasn't eating any cake because I'm doing another Stroller Strength Fitness and Nutrition Challenge, but I was using a spoon to feed it to Caroline. As you can see, I wasn't feeding her fast enough, so she took matters into her own hands, literally.

The girls with their noisemakers. I can't tell you how much I love these girls and their mothers.

The cutest parade ever!

After the parade, we let the kids play on the playground. Caroline and Mason loved the tunnel. I eventually had to pull Caroline out so other kids could have a turn. When we left the playground we went to Tijuana Flats for dinner...6 kids, 3 mommies, and 3 much needed beers (one for each mommy) and we made some great memories. If you can't tell I really appreciate my friends, everyday, but especially the days that Tommy is not home. I love spending time with my kids, but I need some adult conversation mixed in there too. Thanks girls!

Saturday morning, Sarah (another lonely Navy wife, and the Martha Stewart from above) took our kids to the Hands On Children's Museum. They had a blast, and it was a great way to spend a Saturday morning with great friends.

Lyla and Langley's puppet show. So funny how they chose green animals on St. Patty's Day.

Marriage Retreat at St. Simons!

Our church hosted a marriage retreat at St. Simon's, Georgia at the beginning of March. Tommy and I went to St. Simon's back in September for a weekend getaway and loved it, and we will take any chance to get away together, so we quickly signed up. My parents love to come and spend time with the girls, so we asked them if they would stay with them while we went to the retreat. It was only one night away, so we were able to come back and spend some time with Mom and Dad too. We left Friday morning so Tommy could play golf with men from the church. I jumped at the chance for some alone time and went to the Kind and Prince spa for a massage and then went for a run around the island. I love to run and St. Simons provided beautiful moss lined, shady roads for me to run on. A nice change of pace from Jacksonville. We both had a great time doing our own thing, and then met back up that afternoon. We went to Bennie's Red Barn for dinner with our Sunday School class and then went to the first session of the retreat Friday night for a couple of hours. On Saturday the retreat lasted until lunch time, and after that we went to the village and had lunch outside. We couldn't leave town without going by Southern Soul Barbecue and picking up some barbecue and okra for dinner with my parents that night. It is the best barbecue I've ever had and that is saying a lot for a Carolina girl.

Here is a picture someone took of us at the retreat. We are in serious deep discussion as I lay down the law for Tommy. Just kidding. It was very light discussion and we had fun laughing at ourselves.

My parents had so much fun with the girls. They spent some time outside playing at the sand table.

They brought Caroline some of her very own bunny slippers to walk in. They jingle and she absolutely loves walking in them. They were a little slippery on the bottom, but I used my hot glue gun to put some grippers on the bottom. Seriously, the hot glue gun is on the mommy's must have list.

We gave my Mom her Birthday gifts while she was here. Some Marc Jacob's perfume and a book of our most recent family pictures. Lyla loved helping Mom open her gifts.

Tickles from Mommy

Tommy took this picture one night when me and Caroline were playing.  I just love that smile with two big front teeth.  She was 14 months old in these pictures.