The Beginnnings of Spring

The weather is finally warming up and is consistently nice enough to be outside at least a little bit each day, and we have been taking full advantage of every single second of it!!  You two are both lovers of the outdoors, getting dirty, exploring, animals, and just being out in the wide open breathing in the fresh air.  Any moments spent outside automatically change our moods and bring lightness to our days no matter what hardships we faced before heading out the door.  Spring is such a refreshing time of year here in the Midwest.  It feels like an awakening as the days become longer and the weather turns warmer, the neighborhoods come alive with people of all ages walking, running, and playing, filling the streets with life after a long winter (although in my opinion it FLEW by thanks to all our activities!).  It is a beautiful thing.

We have been busy living and time is moving fast.  We had a fun "spring break" with multiple play dates every day at different parks and friend's homes.  Life with the two of you make for lots of social gatherings and many new friends.  After a winter of hibernation for many of our "park" friends, the dates have been plentiful the past month and we couldn't be happier.  Our dear friends and neighbors (Chris, Mandi and Addison) have become some of our closest friends and it has been the biggest blessing for the two of you, but also for me!  Doing life with friends is a joy to be cherished.

We make the most of our weekends with Papa, and leave the house a mess in order to take advantage of our time together and be outside as much as possible.  This past weekend we spent the afternoon at Herrick Lake picnicking, exploring, "fishing", and searching for all the wildlife we could find asking each passerby with a dog, "um, excuse me can I pet your dog?"  Zaylee girl you are shy about a lot of things, but when it comes to animals and wanting to be near them, you have no fear.  Marcel is equally if not a more extreme animal lover, and together we love on all the animals without having to care for any of our own!  We have already hit up each of our favorite parks multiple times, walked to get ice cream, visited the horses and baby lambs, puddle jumped like pros, and blew countless bubbles.  Life is so good with the two of you to enjoy it with.  I love learning and exploring with my babies, and can't wait to experience each new thing with you both as we adventure together this spring/summer. 

Her basket prepared all on her own.  She requested a picnic just like in France.

A good ol' fashion hair pull...

The Bench where Papa proposed to Mama!

Sibling Sweetness

It is no secret Marcel is completely smitten with you his beloved big sister, but lately he has been showing his affections more and more.  He is normally always awake before you both in the morning and at nap time, and the second he hears your little footsteps running across the floor he lights up and points at the stairs while he runs to meet you on the landing.  When you make it to the bottom of the stairs, he throws his arms around you and melts into you, letting go only after you declare you have had enough hugging!  He is relentless and goes back for many more hugs until you shout, "No more hugs!  All done Marcel!"  I usually have to intervene and give you your much needed space to properly come back to the living from your sleepy state of mind.

You are so sweet with him and although he can get on your nerves and in your space, you are never mean to him.  You may loudly voice your frustrations and call (loudly) for me to help the situation, but you are gentle with him and I am so proud of the way you are with him.  He is coming into his own personality and is proving to be hilarious, silly, a bit short tempered, possessive of what he claims as his own (especially food!), loving, affectionate, all while still wanting to do everything you do.  Watching the two of you play and interact with one another is the greatest gift.  I pray daily that the bond I see forming and building between the two of you will only grow and deepen as time goes on.

Here's a little snippet of our after nap snuggles on the couch this afternoon and a dialogue I wrote down right before I caught almost the exact same scene on film:
 
We were all sitting on the couch having our snack together, and without ever realizing it Marcel had made his way on to your lap.  As he moved over onto the couch you said to me,  "Mom, Marcel was just sitting on my lap then I was pretending to be his mom."  You had that look you get when you know you are too cute for me to handle and I just melt at every word you say and I was so in love in that moment.  You looked at Marcel while patting your legs and ask, "Marcel want to sit on my lap?  It's really fun!"  He pushed his hands into the couch with his little bum in the air and plopped it right on your lap.  As you hugged your arms around him both laughing as you toppled over onto the couch you said, "Woah, this is making me nervous, but don't worry Marcel I got you."

And another unrelated video from our after nap play time because I just love listening to the things that come out of  your imagination and watching your crazy expressive facial expressions! :)

A Post I Wrote over a month ago! :)

You have the BEST imagination and playing with you is the most fun.  The house if usually a disaster, toys and books covering the living room, dishes left on the table until nap time roles around, all for the luxury it is to get down to your level and play made believe in all sorts of imaginary lands.  Marcel is the best playmate and tags right along with us adding his on touch to whatever it is we are doing.  The two of you are becoming great friends and look out for one another always.  The sibling rivalry and bickering has set in, but it doesn't interfere with your adoration for each other. 

Today as lunch was in the oven, we set up shop at your tiny table in the living room and had a few "appetizers" together per Chef Marcel.  He could play in your kitchen all day long, and is always ready with a fresh cup of orange juice or a warm bowl of soup.  Any mention of food and he darts off to the kitchen to prepare something special and delivers it with the most delightful grin and often a sweet kiss before going back to work.  As we were eating, you jumped up and said you were late for a wedding.  This is the dialogue that followed word for word (luckily I had a pen in hand and took notes!):

"I'm going to a wedding date.  You need to calm my baby down for me because she's going to be sad.  Her bed is right here when you get her quiet.  You can take her to the park in the stroller or just stay here.  Ok see you in the day!  Oh Wait!!  I forgot my bag.  I love you sweetie (gave a kiss to your baby)."

After a minute or so you returned and went on:

"There was no wedding!  I looked everywhere but everyone left.  So, how was my baby, Allie?  Oh good!"  You then proceeded to feed her snacks from you bag, kissing her sweet head letting her know you missed her.  It was pretty much the dialogue I said to your first babysitter back in October when Papa and I were heading off to a wedding.  Your memory amazes us daily, almost as much as your imagination and the stories you come up with.  We are having more fun with the two of you every day, and love being your parents. 

Sick Days

The days have been moving slowly around here the past ten days with sickness clouding our normal, fun filled days with outings and play time.  We have watched way to many shows, which is now proving to be detrimental to you, Zaylee girl, as you have taken on a new level of tantrum throwing capabilities in protest to my very limited screen time the last few days.  You are definitely becoming more vocal about your likes and dislikes and are full of a lot of passionate drama filled sentiments about such things. 

Everyone that meets you always comments on your "old soul" in reference to the way in which you talk.  You have always had a big vocabulary and talked with idioms far beyond your age.  It isn't that you talk more than other kids your age, but rather how you talk that often makes people notice you for the sweet, sassy, funny little lady that you are.  During your week of self prescribed "bedrest", you were utterly silent, and I was lost without all of your words.  Marcel was extremely on edge with the new silence that filled our walls and made it known that he missed his sister by doing everything in his power to get your attention.  This involved throwing himself into you and proceeding to lay on top of you until your screams for mercy scared him enough to roll off and run for safety into my arms.  He couldn't get his hands off you, and continually stole your nuk, bunny, and blankey in hopes of getting a rouse out of you, but instead of chasing him down as per usual you would melt into a pile of tears pleading for me to help you as you yelled, "STTOOPPP that MMAWCELLIE!!"  He adores you and would do anything to make you happy, so each time he failed to get you off the couch he would run back to you lay his head in your lap and surrender bunny and nuk back into your ready hands. 

This "bucket" was your security and this may have been the scariest way to find you sleeping!

You requested Mcdonald's daily and by day five I get in, but it went untouched by you :(

You are both finally on the mend after we figured out it was an ear infection that was keep you down pretty girl.  Marcel just had a case of a new tooth combined with a little cold that brought him down the last couple days.  The playing has commenced and laughter has filled our home again.  It is so good to have my babies (mostly) back, although the extra snuggles and lazy days were welcomed.  To be your mother is the greatest joy I have ever known, and although the sick days can be consuming and exhausting, I couldn't have felt more blessed to have the two of you fighting over my affection and my open arms ready and waiting with lots of warm snuggles.