A Cousin is Born

 Claire Foster was born on August 23rd.  Elise was absolutely in love with her.  She wanted to hold her the whole time we were visiting, and she wanted to kiss her a ton.  She told me many times while we were there and after we came home that she was so beautiful. 

Erin was impressed with her new cousin, too, but we didn't let her get a hold of her.  Erin is terror on her baby dolls when she is "loving" on them.  There is no telling how she'd be with an infant.  Something best left untested until both Erin and Claire are a bit older!

 I am very proud to say I am 2 for 2 on guessing the sex of Amanda's babies.  She kills me that she doesn't find out until they are here (I am too Type A for that!) but I have guessed accurately with both of hers, and had a big bag of pink stuff to bestow on my niece at the hospital that was purchased before she was born.  If I had been wrong, we would've had to make a quick run to Babies R Us for something blue :)

We're so happy you've joined the family, Claire!

First Day of Preschool, Take 2

 Things got serious for Elise on August 15th.  That was Sneak Peek for what she calls "The Big Preschool."  She was ticked in the Sneak Peek pic because we wouldn't let her play on the playground on the way in.  We're mean parents like that.

Her face was decidedly more cheerful when she started at the Big Preschool for real the following Monday.  She told us on her first day that she didn't make any friends.  She acted slightly concerned about it, but when we asked her why she didn't try to play with anyone (she usually makes friends everywhere she goes because there's not a shy bone in her body), she said that she played with the boy teacher (there are two girls and one boy teacher in her class).  She told us the next day she made friends with a boy in a red shirt and a girl in a purple shirt.  She's not the best at remembering names--just ask "Dave" (what she called Evan for a while), Hannah and "Tara" (she interchanges Hannah and Cara still to this day), or "My round friend" (the neighbor boy who has a round face).  

We're a few weeks in now, and she definitely likes the Big Preschool the best.  She still has fun at the Little Preschool, but she prefers the Big Preschool.  By the way, the best that we can tell, the reason she calls it the Big Preschool is because it is at the big elementary school :)

First Day of Preschool

How did this happen?  How did this teeny tiny baby grow into a preschooler over night?  Because I swear to you that's how fast it happened.

Elise Joann Jackson, around 2 weeks old.

 Elise is going to have all sorts of preschool fun this year.  She is attending TWO preschools.  The first, through our church (St. Paul's Lutheran Church).  The second, through the public schools in Marshfield.  Sean and I both work full-time, so we needed someone to fill in the gaps since the public school preschool is only from 8:30am-11:30am.  Luckily, our church offers a great preschool and will take and pick up Elise from the public school.

Elise Joann Jackson, 4 1/2, first day of preschool (Take One :))

Elise's first day of preschool at St. Paul's started EARLY.  I had to be at an appointment at 7am, and still had to drop Erin off at daycare (she started full-time this week, too.  Lots of changes at the Jackson house!) before taking Elise.  She took it all in stride, though, and we did pretty good!  When I dropped her off, I talked to her teacher for a bit and she went right on in and started playing with a little boy.  When I needed to leave, she couldn't even be bothered to stop long enough for a hug.  She simply waved and told me bye before going back to her blocks.  The teacher called in the afternoon and said that she was doing really well, but seemed a little shy.  I laughed, because SHY is not an adjective that accurately portrays my daughter.  I figured that was first day jitters and she'll be her normal self before the end of the week!  

Last night, she told Daddy and me that she made 3 friends.  She didn't know their names, she only knew what color their shirts were.  One was a boy, and two were girls.  That's all she had.  She also told us she tried salad, and that she drew Earth out of her hand with her thumbs as trees.  

Overall, a pretty good first day at school.  Can't wait to hear what she thinks of Preschool #2 at Sneak Peek on Thursday!

One Year

Thank Goodness for the onesie stickers--they motivated me to take monthly pics of Miss Erin (except for at 10mos, when I forgot--luckily that fell around Mother's Day!)

 I have been a failure of a blogger since April.  I have no good excuse: I barely got my pics posted to FB, let alone taking the time to post them here and come up with clever commentary!  But here I am, marking a milestone.  My baby is now ONE.

She got shy when everyone sang happy birthday!

 In the interest of keeping things "fair" we did a huge 1st birthday party for Erin just like we did for Elise.  It was mostly family, but we've got big families, so that should tell you how big of a party it was!

She got into opening presents at the very end.

 We were so thankful to everyone for taking the time to come out and celebrate with us, and we're definitely thankful for our feisty little girl!

She likes cake!

Say a prayer: she drives like her mother.

Best buddies

One year stats: 

Height: 30.5 in (90-95th percentile)

Weight: 20lbs, 4 oz (50-75th percentile)

Head Circumference: 18in (50-75th percentile)

2 teeth--the front two on bottom

Straight blonde hair and blue eyes

 Favorite thing: Pacifiers--the girl loves them.

Erin has such a silly personality.  She loves to make people laugh, and she's very personable.  She is rarely shy, and loves to be cuddled by pretty much anyone.  Recently, we sadly had to attend the funeral of a relative in Nebraska.  She had never met 95% of the people there, but she let anyone who wanted to hold her.  She's not walking yet--she thinks it's faster to crawl so she only practices for a few minutes before she drops down and crawls off.  I suspect it will be a few more weeks before she's walking for this reason.

Our Hiking Adventure

The Group before heading out.

April 12th, I did something that I wasn't sure I'd ever be willing to do: I went backpacking with my husband.  Backpacking is one of his passions, one that I kindly listened to him talk about, one that I bought him items for, but not one that I planned on participating in (and had been successful in avoiding for the last 11 years.)  My degree of "outdoorsy" can be summed up in a quote I found on pinterest: "I am outdoorsy in that I like drinking on patios".  But as part of his Christmas in 2012, I gave him 6 prepaid dates for 2013, and I decided I'd take the plunge and go with him.  It was our March/April date, and the ONLY weekend that worked for our schedules was a weekend he had already planned for hiking with his dad and Will.  Luckily, they were game to bring their wives too, and make it a group outing. 

 The thing is, I actually really liked it!  It was definitely hard work, and no doubt there were parts of it I didn't enjoy (the hike out was BRUTAL, and this girl doesn't like to go 3 days without a shower), but I got to see some really great things.  For one, I got to check out the tallest waterfall between the Appalachians and the Rockies.

 For two, I got to see this really other neat places like the foundation of an old schoolhouse and this old cabin.

 For three, I got to hang out with some really fun people, all of whom were super accommodating and patient with their self-professed diva.

 Oh yeah, and there was also the VIEWS. 

 The area was just amazing.  Pictures don't come close to doing it justice.

 Also, quite amazingly, Sean and I got along great throughout the entire trip.  We have a tendency to bicker when I whine or when he loses his patience when trying to teach me something new.  We were both able to keep our individual irritations in check and had a wonderful time together.  Sleeping zipped up in a sleeping bag together and cuddling by the fire definitely helped the moods!

 All in all, it was a great trip and I'd love to go back again.  I am still a "diva" when it comes to the outdoors, there is no doubt about that, but I think I can handle roughing it once or twice a year to spend some time with my husband doing something he loves--and something I ended up loving, too.

April Musings

 Look at that cute little duckie!  Poor Erin had been using a hooded towel since birth that said "Elise" on it.  Luckily, the Easter bunny FINALLY found a cute hooded towel that was both big and thick enough to suit Mommy's tastes, and Erin thinks it is hilarious.

 Meet Ariel.  Ariel is proof that Mommy should never underestimate Elise's ability to do ANYTHING.  After watching several other kids miss the bowl while tossing the ping pong ball, and after thinking of all the wild throws Elise has made throughout her 4 years, I decided that I would let Elise try her hand at hitting the bowl and winning a fish (certain that I wouldn't have to do anything but console my little 'loser').  In the end, I had to buy $16 worth of goldfish supplies, and reluctantly make a home for Ariel.  Elise is so clever that she names her fish after a mermaid.  And I have definitely learned a lesson: no more carnival games in which Elise could win a live animal.

 Elise has been getting steadily better with her art.  I think she is going to have her Daddy's talent.  Though I am a little bummed at the bellies she added to her Daddy and me when she drew this family portrait.

Nine months!  WHAT?!  That seems like such a big number on the "months" scale.  She is rolling everywhere, and gets up on all fours, but still no crawling.  She claps, she waves bye-bye, and she squeals constantly, but she doesn't say anything other than Dada. 

 I thought to myself the other day how funny it was that the pediatrician had me so concerned about the fact that she was slow to start giggling.  It's amusing, because Erin is one happy kid.  She laughs at everything.  Elise is very good at entertaining her, and even something as silly as something falling off the table can tickle her.

She is FINALLY getting a little tooth on bottom.  Her top gums are swollen, too, so she just might end up with multiple teeth all at once.  It's about time!

Erin at 8mos and Easter

 Erin was 8 mos old on 3/12/13.  Her loves at 8mos are squealing, club crackers, and rolling.  Everywhere.  She gets up on all fours, but quickly determines that it isn't worth the effort of crawling, and then rolls where she needs to go. 

 She is an incredibly pleasant little gal.  She giggles and smiles all the time, and she is constantly checking out her surroundings.

 We celebrated Easter on March 31st this year.  I was so excited to find the girls the cutest matching dresses.  I will probably try to coordinate them for as long as they'll allow it :)

 My dress even went pretty nicely with their outfits--though that was an accident.  I didn't even notice it until someone pointed it out to me at church!

 We got a pretty good family picture together for Easter.  I can't believe how big my girls are getting!

 Erin isn't big into candy, so the Easter bunny brought her a hooded towel, washcloths, bath toys, and new jammies.

 Elise got a new plate, lots of candy and eggs, and a new basket for her bike.

This was really the only pic I got of the girls together in their dresses.  Erin was napping when Elise went to Sunday school, church was chaos, and I sort of forgot by the time we got to Mammy's.  But as you can see, they are cuties!

I forgot to charge my camera, and it died at Mammy and Popa's, but we also got to enjoy festivities at MawMaw and PawPaw's.  Elise definitely got a haul of eggs between the two houses!

 All in all, it was a beautiful day with wonderful family and most importantly: an awesome opportunity to praise our RISEN Lord!