I have mentioned in a couple of posts lately that Kate has recently become obsessed with princesses! I'm not exactly sure where the fascination has come from. I am thinking there may be some influence from school or she may have just totally come up with it on her own. Who knows! Anyways, Kate got a box with princess dress up clothes for her birthday, including shoes, bracelets, necklaces, crowns...all things necessary to turn an ordinary little girl into a princess. Since we received the "princess box" as Kate calls it we have not been able to make it through too many days without a princess transformation. There have even been several days where Princess Kate is with us all day long! Just thought I would give you a little picture into the daily life of a 2 year old princess--
Princess Kate plays at Nonna and Papa's house
She helps pick out a book to read to her little sister
She has coffee with Daddy before he goes to work
Princess Kate has friends (Annie Grace Laperouse) over to play and let them borrow a princess outfit as well
She multi tasks--reading while pushing her ball popper
No chauffer needed. Princess Kate can drive herself
She also provides her own entertainment…"I play drums marching band!"
Princess Kate oversees the putting up of our Christmas tree
I try to be thankful each and every day for the wonderful blessings in our lives and around Thanksgiving it is the perfect time to really think of all that we have to be thankful for. In this year that we have welcomed sweet Emily into our lives and as Kate has just turned another year older we are obviously thankful beyond what words can express for our sweet girls! I have watched as many people on Facebook have been giving thanks daily during the month of November in honor of Thanksgiving. Since I never do anything but share my blog posts on Facebook, I thought it would be fun to think of 30 things that the Speyrer Krewe is thankful for and just note them all in this post. In no particular order--
I think that I can speak for all of us in the Speyrer Krewe and say that we are all thankful to have one another!
We are also thankful for our extended families! Kate and Emily are so blessed with wonderful grandparents and lots of fun cousins, aunts, uncles, great-grandparents and many others!
I am thankful to have recently been able to stay home with my girls rather than return to work!
I am thankful for Nick, my great husband and excellent Daddy! He works hard, plays hard, takes amazing care of our girls and helps me out around the house.
I am thankful to be a mom!!
I am thankful for a roof over our heads! I love our house!
I am thankful that I have been able to breastfeed both of our girls! Excellent bonding experience and saves $$ too!
"DD" (DVD) players both in the house and in our cars
Coffee. Even though I haven't had caffeine in about 4 years I still love a good cup of decaf coffee
A glass of wine after getting the girls in the bed
For the addictive laughter of my little girls. Emily is ticklish and I can get a good chuckle out of her every night while getting her ready for bed. Whenever something really gets Kate laughing I do my best to keep it going no matter what it is because there is no better sound in the world than a true, heartfelt, no-worries-in-the-world laugh from your child.
I am thankful for my parents and in-laws. Having children has given me a whole new level of love and respect for our parents. It is impossible to know just how much they love you until you have children of your own. My wonderful parents have taught me so much, I cannot even begin to express how thankful I am for them. And my father-in-law is one of the kindest people I have ever met and I am thankful to him and my mother-in-law for making my husband the man he is today. I wish I had more time with Nick's mom and that our girls could have met her, but I am thankful that I was able for the time that I did have with her and know that she watches over us every day.
I am thankful for technology. I don't know what I would do without my iPhone, iPad and our Mac
My camera! I may not be taking as many pictures as I should these days (I mean I should never stop taking pictures!) but I try to capture as many of the special day-to-day moments as I can.
My sisters and brother- and sister-in-laws
I am thankful that Christmastime is upon us! It is my favorite time of the year! I love the decorations and giving gifts to others. I am also enjoying getting to teach Kate all about Christmas this year.
I am thankful for friends, who although I may not see or speak to them all the time, when we are able to spend time together we are able to pick back up where we left off
Kate's school. Most importantly Kate loves it and I am able to give her friends to play with on a regular basis in a safe environment. It also give me a little quality time with Miss Emily
A husband who likes to cook
Nick is thankful for LSU sports--most importantly football but he is also a devoted fan who follows pretty much any sporting event that LSU participates in
Kate is thankful for...
Blankey
Paci (still working up the gumption to take it away from her)
All things Mickey/Minnie Mouse
Her Santa "DD" (DVD)
And probably the current top ranking toy--a Leap Frog picnic basket
Emily is thankful for…
Her big papasan swing. I don't think we could nap without it
The fact that she has been able to get her hands/fingers in her mouth the last couple of weeks. She is definitely looking like she'll be more of a thumb sucker than a paci girl…braces here we come
Her space heater, noise maker and bed. She is such a great sleeper and I truly believe it is due to these factors.
Her daily bath. She loves it!
Her sister Kate. Emily already thinks that Kate is one of the greatest things in the world. When she can, she is always staring at Kate and loves when Kate talks to her and gives her kisses. (I am also thankful that my girls love one another. It is an amazing thing to watch--that from birth Kate has truly loved Emily like she has always been here, and as I said, Emily already thinks Kate is pretty great!)
I think I could go on for many, many more…I'm so glad we have so much to be thankful for! I know Nick is also thankful for many of the things that I am thankful for and many more. He just wasn't given the chance to have any input in the list :) I hope all of you have had a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving! Enjoy a few pictures from our Thanksgiving weekend--
Emily snoozing with Pop Pop at Aunt Fanny's before Thanksgiving dinner
Kate and Connor playing at Aunt Fanny's
Kate and Connor enjoying their Thanksgiving feast
We were happy that Uncle D, Aunt B and Claire stayed with us for most of the weekend. Kate and Emily had a lot of fun playing with Claire!
We hosted lunch with friends on Saturday and we all had so much fun watching all of the kiddos play
I am finally getting around to sharing some pictures from our week in North Alabama. Since our last trip up in the Spring, Nonna and Papa have moved into a new house on the lake so we were super excited to see the new place and enjoy being on the water. We coincidentally timed our trip perfectly with the changing leaves. It was absolutely beautiful driving up on the Natchez Trace and had some pretty gorgeous views at Nonna and Papa's too! Most of our week was pretty low key just spending time with family and taking it easy but we did get out on Kate's birthday to go see Leo and Una, the UNA mascots, and take a ride on the water. Nick and I had a separate boat trip out one day while Kate was napping. It was really too cold to get the girls out on the water much. We had such a great week and can't wait to get to really get into the water next summer! Enjoy some of our pictures from the week.
These were our gorgeous views waking up each morning
Nonna and Papa's new house
Kate and Nonna on the pier throwing acorns into the water. This was definitely one of Kate's favorite activities while we were there
Kate with Leo and Una. Leo and Una were pretty lazy while we were there
Una did get up and walk around just a bit
Kate and Daddy walking on UNA's campus
Kate wanted to ride this lion outside of Leo and Una's habitat but she was scared so Daddy was a good sport and took a ride with Kate
Kate driving the waverunner while she let Daddy ride along with her
Momma, Daddy and Kate riding on the waverunner
Kate with Daniel and Harper
Daniel walking Kate up the hill
Kate's first appearance as a princess was at Nonna and Papa's. You can tell by the smile on her face that she was in love from the first moment. We have worn a princess outfit at least once a day almost every day since
Emily was 3 months old on the 11th. We just went to the doctor this past Friday to get her growth stats--she is currently 14 lbs, 11 oz and 26 inches long, which is 90th percentile for weight and off the charts for length. She has definitely become much more active over the past month. She has already rolled over from tummy to back and she is constantly reaching for things now. She is loving being in her bouncy seat that has little animals that she can bat and pull down. Emily is chatty, happy and an absolutely perfect baby! I never hear a peep out of her during the night. Every once in a while she wakes up at 4ish but the majority of the time she is sleeping from 9 to at least 6. I feel like she hardly ever really cries (unless she is in the car--she's definitely not a big fan of the car but we survive it) and she will just whine a little when she's hungry or tired. Emily loves her bath and we have graduated from the infant tub to laying on a sponge in the big bath tub. We are having more fun every day with little Emily!
Laying in the wagon while playing outside with Kate
Emily with Braxton
Emily and Daddy at Kate's birthday party
With Nanny and Karoline
In the bouncey seat. You can see that she's already pulled down one of the animals and is working on the snail
Well Kate's birthday extravaganza has finally come to an end. After celebrating for about a week and a half I am finally able to share info and pictures from all of her festivities. We were in North Alabama for Kate's actual birthday and celebrated with a practice round of birthday activities...blowing out candles, being sung to, opening presents, etc. We decided that it was very good to have practiced without a crowd since Kate definitely did NOT like candles. So Kate enjoyed birthday cupcakes with Mary Emma, Daniel and Liza after dinner on her actual birthday and got a few "happy presents" as Kate calls them from Nonna and Papa. Then the Friday after her birthday we had a party with all of our Alabama family. And finally we had a party with our Louisiana family and friends at Pop Pop's house this past Saturday. Kate has had a blast at each of the celebrations. We are so blessed to have a big family with lots of cousins almost all of which were able to celebrate with us. I think Kate may be in for a shock when this week passes us by with no birthday party! She is having a lot of fun playing with her happy presents and we even still have some "happy boons" (balloons) and "happy cake" left at our house.
I can't believe what a big girl Kate is becoming! We still have our momentary lapses into baby-ness--we still haven't gotten rid of our paci yet (a project to be tackled very soon!) and Kate is asking more than ever for "Momma hold you" and "Daddy hold you", which I have to admit has been pretty nice--but overall we have a pretty independent, happy, chatty, strong willed little girl. Kate still loves all things Mickey mouse, hence the Minnie birthday parties, but has recently become very fascinated with princesses. She even got some dress up dresses, shoes and jewelry for her birthday that she insists on wearing pretty much all of the time now. She is also very into Santa right now, which I guess is good preparation for the upcoming holidays. "Sanna cause"(Santa Claus) is the "DD" (DVD) of choice right now and Christmas books are often the books of choice right now as well. I think I could recite the Santa DVD in my sleep. I definitely walk around singing the songs all day! Kate knows almost all of the basic colors (red, blue, green, yellow, pink, purple, brown) and loves to "coco" (color) in her coloring books all the time. She doesn't always do it when asked, but she does know how to spell her first name. She can count backwards from ten and up to at least thirteen (sometimes makes it to fifteen but usually skips around in her teens before she gets to twenty). Kate also has a recent fascination with marching bands. As posted, we did go see the LSU band several weeks ago but it has taken a long time for all of that to really soak in. Kate has had a little toy drum since Christmas last year and has now started wearing it, playing it and telling us that she's in the marching band. The LSU band is also one of her favorite things to get Daddy to pull up on You Tube. Kate is also quite the little helper. Anytime I am baking or cooking she wants to be right in the middle of it--"I hep Momma!"--measuring and stirring. She also thinks she's helping while I put my makeup on. She sits on the counter, digs around in my makeup bag, has her own set of brushes and pretends to put makeup on. She knows where each thing goes without me telling her. For example, she'll try to put eyeliner and mascara on her eyes but knows that powder and blush go on her cheeks.
I can't believe how fast time is flying by! I know we'll have another year down before I know it. Kate is so special and I am so proud and blessed to be her Momma!
Playing outside before her AL birthday party
"happy boons" from the Boxes and Simmons on her actual birthday
Cupcake time on her actual birthday. In the process of melting down over the candles.
Daddy helping Kate figure out how to tackle the cupcake
Opening "happy presents" from Nonna and Papa on her actual birthday
All of the cousins at Kate's AL birthday party
Kate and "Danull" As you can see we got the most out of our Minnie dress, wearing it for both birthday parties
Trying to get a picture with Granny and all of her great-grandchildren. Kate was all ready for her "happy cake" so this ended up being the best we could get before she started to melt down
Ready for singing! She loved being sung to. Every time she would ask for it to be sang again
Little miss careful tasting one tiny fingertip full of icing
Enjoying her happy cake
Happy presents!
Opening presents with Momma and Daddy
Checking out the princess goods
Kate's Minnie house.
Showing Granny the Minnie house
Giving Granny Betty, Kate's great great Aunt (Granny's sister), some loving. We were so glad that we were able to spend some time with Granny Betty while we were in AL
Showing Mama LaHaye the goodies at Kate's LA party
We celebrated all of the November birthdays at the LA party
Krewes are the masking and parading clubs (or social organizations) for which New Orleans is both famous and infamous. We hope to be neither. But we do expect our life to be one big PARTY as we PARADE and chase our sweet little girls, Kate and Emily around South Louisiana and North Alabama. Not sure if you will ‘pass’ a good time by reading our blog, but we hope to keep the world aFLOAT of our happenings. Joie’ de vivre!
