Rochester Visit

We had a great time in Rochester this past weekend. I was glad that I had Friday off so as soon as Bob was finished with work, we were on the road. I'm so thankful that both of the girls travel so well! Maddie talked most of the way and started the 'are we there yet' game. My girl is getting so big! She rolls from her tummy to her back, but that's it. She will lay on her back and scoot across the floor. I think we are going to be in trouble once she learns to crawl. She reaches for everything and wants it in her mouth!

Janet made the most fabulous lobster chowder for dinner and Maddie helped her bake a cake. Maddie loves to help in the kitchen and Jan is a great teacher.

CeCe and the girls!

It was great to see Phyllis this weekend since we hadn't seen her since Christmas. She had fallen and broke her hip so she has now moved from an assistant living facility to a nursing home. She has the most amazing attitude and everyone loves her! She loves to watch the girls and lights up when we come to visit.

Tonight I thought I would save some time and put both of the girls in the bath tub together. It was crazy!! Mia was going all over the place and I think I need to keep her contained in her own infant bath for a little while longer. The girls were splashing and making a mess so I got Amelia out and they didn't play much together. I have to say that they are pretty cute together!!

Blessings

I love, love, love this song!

Some of God's greatest blessings come in his perfect time and not our own. I think of the time in my life when I struggled with trying to have a baby. There were many nights that I cried and prayed that I would someday be a mom. Looking back, I see that God had a plan for us and through those tears and heartache brought us the most amazing gifts I could ever ask for. Sometimes it is hard to see the blessings in those times and I'm thankful for a loving God that hears our prayers and knows our every need!

Sisters!!!

Can you tell that these girls are sisters???Mia at 6 months...

Maddie at 8 months....

Oh my goodness! I can't believe that is has been almost one month since I last updated! Yes, we seem to be busy all of the time, but I want to remember what we have been up to and how the girls are doing? So, here we go.... I love that Maddie loves her sissy so much! She is so good to her and loves to make her laugh!

Miss Amelia is seven months old now and still hasn't decided that she wants to roll over or crawl. She loves to stand in her exersaucer so I thought it was cute when she was standing by herself. She cries when she ends up on her belly and Maddie is usually there to help her back up and bring her what she needs so I'm sure she is in no hurry to get moving!

I can't believe that this sweet face will be four years old next month! She is no longer my baby and is growing up too fast! We have started planning her party and we are going to that it at Twin Ports Gymnastics! The kids can play, have cake and ice cream and I don't have to have it all at my house. She is so excited to have a birthday and I hope to make the day special for her!

Both of our girls love bath time! Mia has started to cry when it's time to get out! She loves to splash in the water and chew on the wash cloth. (Don't you just love all of her rolls?)

Mia continues to be a wonderful baby! She always has a smile of her face and has brought our family so much joy! There are days that I still can't believe that she is ours and I thank God for two beautiful, healthy little girls!

This past weekend we started Maddie in ice skating lessons. I was so impressed how well she did! The lessons are a half hour and then the kids can practice and stay on the ice if they want to. I had told her on the way that she would fall a lot and just had to get back up so she would learn. Every time she fell, she was quick to let the coaches know that she was okay! They were teaching the kids to fall and get back up and she needed help during lessons. By the time we left, she had figured out how to get up by herself and the older kids were a really great help! She wanted to stay and watch the other kids skate and we ended up being there about two hours. I hope she continues to have fun and learns to skate well. It helps that our neighbor is in charge of Learn To Skate and she was great offering an extra hand.

I thought this was really cute! Bob was playing with the girls' blocks and this is what he came up with.


We have another busy weekend planned! We are going down to Rochester to visit Bob's family and see his mom. She had fallen earlier this winter and broke her hip. She has been moved to a nursing home and we haven't been able to go visit her yet. Bob has been so busy with his store going through a remodel that we need to go while we can.

We have had another busy week at the Hogue house! Amelia had her 6 month check-up and she's doing great! She weighed 20 lbs. and 4 oz. and was 27" long. What a big girl! When Maddie was that age she was 19 lbs. 9 oz, so they are pretty close. Mia is such a wonderful baby and is happy most of the time. She hasn't started to roll yet, but sits by herself so well. We just ordered new car seats because Mia has outgrown her infant carrier and it's time for Maddie to be in a big girl booster seat!

Maddie had to have two sealants on her back baby teeth and she was amazing! She climbed up
in the chair, put on her sunglasses and was ready to go! We were done in a half hour and she was excited to get stickers, pencils and a new toothbrush. I love our dentist and they make it so much fun for the kids and she loves to go!

We had a great weekend with my family and celebrating my sisters baby shower! Michelle's in-laws put on a wonderful shower and it was great getting to know their family a little more.

Matt is so good to our girls and I'm really excited for their baby to arrive in April. He is going to be one great daddy!

I'm so glad that my Dad decided to come on the trip. We hadn't seen him since Thanksgiving so we were excited to see him! He sure loves his girls and I love to watch my parents with their grand kids! They both just glow!!!

I love these girls so much!

We are looking forward to this weekend with Bob's sister CeCe coming for a visit! It will be nice to spend the weekend at home and not go anywhere. It seems like we have been running so much lately. The girls get their pictures taken tomorrow so I hope they turn out? It's a long weekend for me with Monday being President's Day! Maybe I will get caught up with things that need to get done around the house or just have a play day with my girls! We will see but I'm excited for a extra day with them!


Enjoy your weekend!!

January....

I know that it has been a super long time since I updated my blog so here we go....

The month of January has seemed to fly right on by. The girls are both doing great and Amelia is changing so fast. She has started eating baby food, playing with toys and sitting up by herself. I love to watch her as she reaches different stages of development and she has such a little personality! Maddie is a wonderful big sister and makes her laugh all of the time.

I thought this picture of Maddie was so cute! She had her jewelry box out and was watching TV...I guess she had to check herself out at time or two??

Look at this happy girl!!! Her smile brightens my day!


Maddie has been wanting to help with the dishes whenever she can. She sees Grace helping her mom at daycare and Maddie want to be "big" too! We will see how long that lasts??

My girl is growing too fast! We go next week to register her for pre-K and she is so excited! It's hard to believe that she will be in school next year. Sometimes I wish I could keep them little forever!

My girls...

Amelia looks so much like Madelyn did when she was a baby. You can definitely tell that they are sisters!

Sitting up all by myself!

I took Amelia to the Dr. last week for a cough that has been hanging on. She ended up being fine but I can't believe how big she is! She weighed 19 lbs. 11 oz. She wears 9-12 month clothes and is already passing up Maddie at that age. I'm glad that she is a happy, healthy little girl!

Bob and I just celebrated our 12th anniversary yesterday. Wow, it goes fast! I think how our lives have changed so much. It is no longer about ourselves but raising these two amazing little girls. There was a time that I never thought I would get to be mom. It's a lot of work and I wouldn't trade it for anything. The girls have brought us more joy than we could ever imagine and I'm so thankful for them and an amazing husband!

Christmas pictures

I forgot that I had uploaded pictures from Christmas and never posted them. We did have a wonderful time in Rochester and it was great to see Blake too! Here are a few pictures from the weekend....

Bob, Phyllis and Blake

Maddie and CeCe handed out the gifts.

Yes, I know that I have been terrible at updating my blog. I will get some new pictures up soon!