Happy birthday Daddy!

Going through any type of special occasion is so fun these days. We went shopping for Daddy's presents and Maja insisted Daddy needed a teddy bear so of course she got him one. And a coffee mug and fondue set :). They picked out their own cards and couldn't wait to sing Happy Birthday!

Fun little comparison

All these were taken at exactly 2 months. Interesting seeing all their differences. I was convinced Zoey looked a lot like Maja but after looking at this, I'm not that sure anymore

Giving the crib a go

We tried rooming the older girls one night so I could test out the crib and Zoey did pretty good although I still brought her in with us when I went do bed since she wakes up to eat a few times still so it's easier for me. And Isla was too much of a pain in Maja's room so we probably won't use it for nights anytime soon but she does nap there every now and then and she LOVES her mobile!

Snow days

Once a year it snows. The city gets covered and literally looses control. Roads don't get plowed. Everything closes and you'd think it's just about the end of the world.

For us it just means lots of fun :).

We woke up to this one day and the girls were super excited

On the way to being completely independent

I dream of the day where all my kids can get themselves out of bed, make breakfast and entertain themselves until I get up. Sleeping in every once in a while would be nice :)

I'm one kid closer to that today!

Maja usually gets up, stands in my doorway and whispers "Mom.... Mom... Moooooom, can I please go downstairs?". I love that she asks permission (doubt Isla ever will, lol) but as soon as I say yes, she'll go down and play for a while until Isla and I wake up. At least I have until Isla wakes up and Zoey is usually last.

Well I noticed Maja has been sneaking whatever she can while she is playing downstairs. Pretzels, cookies and water. She sets it all up nice on a plate and sits at her tabla and eats it. That's awesome so I've been leaving things around for her so it's easier.

I think it's adorable, especially when she chooses her snak herself. This is what I found in the corner of the playroom one day

Zoey adores her Daddy

Her face lights up when she sees him

Sometimes you just have to let them express themselves

I try to keep it limited to while we are home as much as I can lol

2 month snuck up on me!

I wish she could stay tiny for longer. I don't feel like I have enough time to just enjoy her but I try as much as I can to just relax and look at her. We babywear a lot! she loves it and it gives us more cuddle time.

She has not had her two months check up yet but she has gotten huge! I can't believe I have a whole bin of small clothes to put away already :(.

At two months she:
- "talks" a lot
- belly laughs
- she can hold her head pretty well when I pull on her arms into a sitting position
- she started to grab and pull on the toys hanging from her mat
- no more swaddling. She likes to move around and sleep with her arms up just like her sisters
- yes, the peace sign seems to be her thing :)

Parenting Isla

Parenting Isla is a whole different ballgame. I like to refer to her as "the boy we never had" mainly because she is as rowdy, stubborn, loud, messy, independent and defiant as I would expect a boy to be. Granted if we had a boy he could very likely be the exact opposite of that but given she is her Daddy's carbon copy I can't help but see a mini toddler Jeff when I look at her.

She is all about the "I do it" and being a stinker a lot. We get a lot of the "what are you going to do about it" attitude even though she isn't being malicious... just challenging and testing her boundaries. And she taunts her sister a lot!

What's interesting is that she is a completely different child when is spending alone time with mom and dad so her behavior is definitely driven by the attention she does or not get. She is such a sweetheart then!

These days I've put a child lock thingy on her door so she can't come out of her room at night and wonder around the house. She doesn't mind it. In the morning when she is done sleeping she will stand by the door and call Maja to come open the door for her :).
Lately she has even began to turn her light on and reading her books or quietly playing after I put her to bed. Doesn't bother me as long as she goes to bed when she is done which she does.

We have tried to put her in Maja's room (since she is still using the room Zoey should be in) but each time we tried she made it more of a hassle then anything else so we will wait a few more months. Zoey will stay with us for a little while longer anyway.

But as much as she exhausts me and makes me want to rethink our non-spanking policy on regular basis, I love the heck out of her

Christmas recap

Christmas came and went and this was the year Maja was really into it. Isla kind of went along with whatever Maja did though.

We kept it fairly low key in terms of spending this year. Their one big gift was the dress up storage Jeff built and I filled with clearance costumes I bought right after Halloween. It's been a huge hit.
We also introduced the girls to Legos and made a cover for their little table to they can build on it whenever they want. They sure do love it!

One month chunk

10lbs 4oz 23 1/4"

Princesses and hairsprays

Now that Maja is in preschool she has been getting birthday party invitations pretty often. The last one was at a local kid hair salon and princess themed. The girls all got to pick out a dress and accessories and then got their hair and nails done. I love how much into it she was:

The Pledge of Allegiance

So the other day I overheard Maja saying part of the Pledge of Allegiance. I was pretty surprised since we've never talked about it and she couldn't have seen it on tv and how many 3 year olds just randomly know how to say "indivisible"? Well turns out that they say it at school every day. It's adorable... one of the kids holds the flag and they all say it together with their right hand on their heart.
ONe day I decided to stay for a bit after class started to see them to it and took some pictures.. it just happened to be PJ day at school so that's why they are all wearing their PJ's. I love that the school has an open door policy and parents and come and go as they wish. I'd love to spend more time there but I hardly ever get a chance to drop Maja off without the other girls and I have to be alone to stay

Visiting Santa

Christmas time this year is pretty awesome. The girls are really into it, especially Maja. She has told everyone she knows that she wants Santa to bring her a "pink teddy bear that she can snuggle". I don't know where this fixation is coming from but she is pretty set on it and doesn't care about getting anything else. Isla has asked for a purple airplane but it's mostly because of Maja telling her that's what she wants. We have settled on just a plain air plane because apparently there is no purple ones!!

We went to see Santa of course and Maja did tell him what she wanted and even held his hand for the picture. Isla on the other hand wanted nothing to do with him but hey, what's a Santa picture without someone crying right???

I love the local "take your own picture" Santa because he also has reindeers right outside

It's the most wonderful time of the year

Christmas is almost here and of course I subjected the girls to some photo torture. I have to say it's getting much easier. They really do enjoy having their picture taken with baby sister

The oldest meets the youngest

Great GrandDad Raymond and Ula came to visit on their way back home to Idaho so they could meet Zoey. I'm so glad I took these pictures of them. He was so happy to be around the girls and holding the baby. Maja and Isla both loved having them around

Real men wear their babies 2.0

It's no secret that I enjoy wearing my babies (until they get too heavy that is, haha) and I love that Jeff gets into it as well. When maja was an infant I could never understand the Moby wrap. It seemed like such a hassle so I never gave it a try but when I had Isla a friend practically forced me into trying it and wrapped it around me herself. It was then when I finally realized what an amazing contraption it was!!
Jeff has tried our other carriers (the Ergo with Maja and the Met Tai with Isla) but I never got him to test out the Moby until now and boy does he love it too! I'm honestly surprised because it is still quite a hassle to tie around compared to any other carried but I love that he is so into it :)

He totes her around while making dinner or watching tv and she is happy as clam snoozing away in there