My Daddy's Shoes

I may have mentioned before...Reagan loves shoes. Lately when we leave the house, Reagan steps into her daddy's boots while waiting on me to load the car. She proudly and lovingly announces, 'daddy'. I finally caught a picture of this sweet moment. We love you daddy!

Spider

This is what I found on my back door this morning (and it is still there). I am absolutely terrified of spiders particularly ones of this size. After a little research, I think that we can call our new pet a St. Andrews Cross spider. Although not poisonous, it is a bit scary. Until it relocates, we will be playing out front.

Mr. Potatoe Head

A Reagan original! This is a favorite toy; especially now that she has more pieces to create with. She calls the doctor Mr. Potato Head...daddy.

The Tongue

Bella Grace has taken to sucking on her tongue. Here is a picture of her in action. It is quite cute!

Imagination Library

Reagan loves to read! She and Bella Grace receive a book once a month from Dolly's Imagination Library. This is a fantastic program started by Dolly Parton that gives books to children each month from birth to 5 years of age. My cousin, Len, informed me that the Knoxville Library was looking for photos of children enjoying their books. Because many of Reagan's favorite books are from Dolly's Imagination Library, we decided to submit a few pictures of her reading her current favorite...The Little Engine that Could. Check out the website (www.imaginationlibrary.com) to see if you too could be a recipient of these wonderful books. Many cities now take part in this program. Happy Reading!

A Visit From an Old Friend

My college roomie came to Virginia for a visit this weekend. We had a wonderful time! Thanks for keeping us company, Lindsay!

Reagan, Lindsay, and Bella Grace...Lindsay gave these adorable dresses to the girls back before Bella Grace was born. The girls enjoyed playing with Miss Lindsay and love her as much as I do.

Thanks for the 'Minnie' car Miss Lindsay! Reagan adores this pink car and her Minnie Mouse; mommy thinks that it is oh so loud =).

Reagan's 'Real' Baby Doll

Check out Reagan's 'Real' baby doll...so funny! She loves her baby sister more than words can describe. I know that they are going to be the best of friends!

Thank You, Daddy!

Reagan received a card and stickers in the mail from Daddy yesterday! So was very excited! It is sweet to view this experience through her eyes. She seems to have a special understanding about the whole thing. She would explain it like this..."Daddy, Teeth, Boat!" This is for you, Daddy!

Dinner Anyone?

Because I am often feeding only one and a half mouths (mine and Reagan's), I am learning to cook differently than ever before. In the past, I rarely prepared the same thing for dinner. We like to try new things and I am always on the look out for new recipes. More recently, I need to prepare quick, easy, all-in-one, good for leftover kind of meals. I am creating a list of meals that work every time. Here are two of our new favorite recipes: Chicken Pot Pie (Reagan lovingly refers to this dish as 'pie') 2 cans Veg All, drain and save 3/4 cup 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 small onion, chopped 1 cup sour cream 3 breasts of chicken, cooked and chopped Combine 3/4 cup of liquid from Veg All with all other ingredients. Pour into a 9 x 13 dish. 1 stick butter 1 cup self rising flour 1 cup milk Combine and pour over pie mixture. Preheat oven to 350 and bake for 1 hour. ********************************************************************* Mac 'n' Cheese Casserole 1 box Deluxe mac 'n' cheese 1 cup frozen peas, thawed 1 cup diced ham 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese Prepare Deluxe mac 'n' cheese as directed on the box. Add peas and ham. Pour into an 8 x 8 dish. Top with shredded cheddar. Bake 400 for 15-20 minutes until warm. ********************************************************************* Happy Cooking!

Back to the Zoo

Because we have a zoo pass and the zoo is so much fun...we make a trip to see the animals whenever possible! Reagan is a true animal lover. She believes that all animals like her as much as she likes them. With her little hand out looking to touch any animal that will let her, she enjoys the zoo every time.

The glass is keeping her from squeezing the prairie dog's stuffing out.

The goats are her favorite part...they give her kisses. She even feed the goats, while a little boy much older than her stood by expressing how scared he was. I am so proud of my animal girl!

Good thing the goose was behind the fence, I think that they both would have liked to get a hold of each other.

Reagan and her friend, Jesse, talking about all that they had seen at the zoo.

Bella Grace was awake for most of the zoo trip. She enjoyed the monkey attached to her stroller more than any other exhibit at the zoo.

Snap

After meal times, Reagan often is content with sitting in her seat snapping and unsnapping (ok, I have to unsnap it) her seat strap. She is always on the lookout for something to snap.

Hat?

I'm thinking suffocation! Reagan says, 'Hat!' While I put away the groceries, Reagan played with the freezer bags. She has such an imagination!

Bounce

Reagan had a good laugh today at the playground while bouncing with Mommy on the sew-saw! The video may make you a bit sea sick...sorry.

Surprise..."Hi Daddy!"

I'm A Big Girl Now

Today Bella Grace took a ride in the big girl stroller for the first time. She is still a bit to small, but it does give her a better view while we are out playing.

A Great Afternoon

This afternoon we met our new military friends, Mommy Kim and Little Boy Jesse, at the park for a play date. We had a wonderful time! Reagan and Jesse are only a few weeks apart and are sure to be big buddies in no time.

Olympics here she comes! You may see Reagan on the balance beam one day in the future competing for gold.

Bella Grace really did have a good time; this is her serious face.

Reagan stops for a water break. It is hard work to have this much fun!

The perfect ending to a great day...ice cream! When asked what flavor she would like, Reagan said, "Chocit!" (her new favorite).

Reagan and Jesse

New Shoes

Reagan is very proud of her first pair of 'running' shoes! They will come in handy for all of the running she does; I think that mommy may need a pair to keep up with her. Daddy...Reagan is ready to run with you anytime!

The Longest Nap

This morning Bella Grace got up early than usual (5am) to eat. After eating and visiting with mommy for a little more than an hour, she fell back asleep in her boppy on our bed. Much to my surprise, she slept until about 10:30am. She is not much of a napper (about 3o minutes at a time), so this was wonderful! What a precious face!

Book Worm

I often find Reagan doing just this...reading. She has both this reading corner downstairs, as well as her 'library' upstairs in her closet. Now that she is older, she likes to read aloud to herself. She has many parts to many books memorized from reading them with mommy and daddy so very many times.

3 Months Old

Bella Grace is 3 months old! Hard to believe how fast she has grown. She recognizes mommy, daddy, and Reagan, she can roll from front to back, and she has just began reaching out to objects. God is so good!

Date with Daddy

Tonight we enjoyed a night out with daddy before he returned to the ship. We ate dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, California Pizza Kitchen, followed by a treat from a new favorite, Melt. The night was enjoyed by all!

Reagan always enjoys pizza, just like her mommy! Can you believe it...she is eating Goat Cheese and Roasted Pepper pizza. She is an adventurous eater!

Yummy!

Bella looks forward to the day that she can also enjoy pizza and ice cream! This little girl is full of precious smiles!

The tasty crepe from Melt (a must try if you live near Virginia Beach Town Center).

Look at all of the gelato flavors...so hard to decide. Reagan thinks that we will have to visit again so that she can try something new. There was another case of gelato with just as many yummy flavors.

Ouch!

Yesterday, Reagan fell down our stairs (about 10 according to daddy)- Ouch! After a few tears, she was up and going again. God sure new what He was doing when He made little ones so very bouncy. What an amazing creator! Reagan's looks a little beat up from the experience (check out her left eye), but certainly not as bad as I would have imagined. She is a tough little cookie! Mommy and Daddy were a little more shaken by the fall.

Another Day at the Beach

We enjoyed another fabulous day at the beach together as a family! Before bathing suits, I thought that we might try to capture a few family photos. We caught a few cute ones!

She Does Dishes

Can you believe it... my 20 month old does dishes! I am sure that this won't last forever, but I am enjoying it while it lasts (even if it does take longer than necessary). Reagan does a fantastic job putting away the silverware as I put away all other items in the dishwasher. As she puts each individual piece in the drawer she says, "tank you".

Bella Grace at 3 Months (almost)

We took Bella Grace for her 3 month pictures yesterday. It is so very hard to believe how quickly she is growing up. For a second time, we have been blessed with a beautiful and happy baby girl!

Something must have been very funny!

This picture captures Bella Grace's little personality- sweet and happy!

We thought that this hat was just too funny! I think that Bella disagrees.

Sisterly Love

These two little girls truly love each other! What a blessing it is to watch their relationship with each other blossom more each day. Reagan can't wait to see her baby sister in the morning. She spends the day playing with Bella Grace and giving her all the love that she can handle. As Bella Grace becomes more active and alert, she looks for Reagan and smiles when Reagan talks to her. My sweet girls are going to be the best of friends!

Look at Bella Grace's grin; I think that she likes sitting with her big sister.

Kisses!

Hugs!

Accessorizing

Bella Grace is learning to accessorize at an early age. What a cool kiddo!

Ketchup Anyone?

Ketchup- Yummy! Reagan literally cleaned her plate last night, eating everything including the ketchup. She truly enjoyed each tasty lick.

Brave Girl

Until last week, Reagan was unsure about the 'big' playground behind our house. She loves the outdoors and running around the play structures, but was a bit timid about playing on it. Last week, Gabby and Len took her to the playground and came back with stories of how brave she was. Last night, we took the girls out to play and witnessed Reagan doing it all by herself for the very first time.

Down the enclosed slide- over and over again.

Jumping on the wiggle bridge- probably her least favorite thing about the playground until now.

Bella Grace doing what she does best when we are out- sleeping!

Surprise!

We thought that it might be nice to surprise daddy with a birthday cake when he returned home yesterday. Reagan and I worked together shopping and baking for this special 'prize'. We love you, daddy! Happy 'late' Birthday!

What a big helper!

The Cake- the candles spell out the number 27 (daddy's age).

Blowing out the candles.

Yummy!

Reagan agrees!