Little Huggums

When my sister and I were little girls, we both had a Madame Alexander "Little Huggums" baby doll. We played with them until their clothes wore off! My sister even picked her baby's eyelashes out! My mom must have really loved these dolls because she even purchased a couple that we were not allowed to play with...which I still have! They're in great condition...booties and all!When Allie turned one, I bought one for her and she enjoyed playing with it some...she's not that into dolls. Now, Emma has it and she just rediscovered it this morning. However, she had to remove its outfit before she could play with it. She loves giving it hugs and taking it to the "store". As I am writing this, she just put it in time-out! Ha! Anyway, I hope this one lasts forever, too!

Emma's 2nd Birthday Party!!!

Emma's 2nd birthday party was so much fun! We celebrated with 25 guests and had a wonderful afternoon visiting with everyone. She loves monkeys...so that's what the birthday theme was for this year. The display turned out really cute...thanks Martha Stewart! Mark made the cake! Yes, I actually admitted that! Ha! I made the monkey cups, etc. I really enjoy planning these birthday parties!

Emma totally understood that it was her party, too! She told me she was going to "open presents" and "blow candles out". She couldn't keep her hands off the gifts, either! She was so cute in her little monkey dress...but refused to wear her special party hat. Enjoy the pictures...

Getting Ready for the Monkey Party!

Wow, I have been really busy getting ready for Emma's monkey-themed birthday party! You wouldn't believe how long it took me to make these cups! I think they turned out pretty cute!

Happy Birthday, Emma!

Today is Emma's 2nd Birthday! We are having a small cupcake party for her tonight and then a monkey-themed party with family on Sunday. She put her feathered party hat on today while I sang "Happy Birthday" and said "where's my presents?"...too cute! I can't believe she is already 2! Here is a picture of the actual hand-made birthday invitation.

Backyard Adventures

Today was absolutely beautiful! We enjoyed a fun afternoon hanging out in the backyard. Mark drove his remote control truck around (with ramps and all) while the girls watched safely from their play set...until the caterpillars arrived! After they spotted one crawling on the steering wheel in the fort, Allie decided she had had enough...Emma wanted to climb back up for another slide.

Cousins

Life is more fun when it's shared with your cousins! My girls love hanging out with their cousins every chance they get...especially Matt! Just being together...playing outside, going to the movies, eating out...you name it! Around the holidays and on vacation, they get to visit with their out-of-town cousins. We wish we lived closer to them! Some of my best childhood memories are with mine!

Zoo Atlanta

Yesterday, we spent the afternoon at the zoo (along with the rest of Atlanta). This was Emma's first visit! It was crowded, but we were still able to see all of the animals and exhibits easily. The baby gorillas were the biggest hit with the girls. Of course, we had to ride the train and carousel. The highlight of the trip was seeing the male and female lions come right up to the glass! We can't wait to go back!

Day Out with Grandma

Today, Allie spent the afternoon shopping with her grandma. She enjoys this so much and looks forward to it every time! They went to Limited Too (her favorite store) and picked out a couple of outfits and visited several other stores along the way. You wouldn't believe what all she came back with! Check out her new outfits, etc. She is a very lucky girl!

Spring Break, Day 2

The girls really had a fun time together today! Emma is so glad that Allie is out of school this week! We didn't really have any set plans...just hanging out. Allie did manage to drag out her CD player and make the entire house listen to Hannah Montana. While she was "performing", she found my old cell phone and decided she needed one of her own...whatever. After dancing with Allie for a while, Emma asked me for her crayons and colored. Girls are so much fun!When Mark finished up for the day, we loaded the kids up and went out to Longhorn for dinner. We stopped by Barnes and Noble for the girls to pick out some books...American Girl for Allie and Horton Hears a Who for Emma.