Messy Georgia

Recently Craig and I have noticed that Georgia can take a seemingly neat meal and make it a disaster. As Georgia gets full/sick of sitting in her highchair she starts rubbing food all over herself and using it as hair gel to signal she would like to be done.

The girls had blueberry pancakes for breakfast the other day. Apparently Georgia is done.

Madelyn... at the same point in the same meal.

Sensory Activities

Preemies can be at risk for sensory/tactile defensiveness... which basically means they can become ultra sensitive and react negatively to various senses like itchy grass, sticky sand or messy situations. While I don't feel the girls are realistically at risk for this I like to be proactive and expose them to various sensory experiences. This is also something fun to do with any babies as it helps to describe the words that go with what they are feeling or seeing such as wet or hard or crunchy.

We have been playing with paper and tin foil lately. The girls like to rip it and squish it which can also help them develop their fine motor skills. One of the more fun activities we did recently involved Cool Whip:


Madelyn needed a little convincing...

Georgia dove right in:

Clean Teeth!

Madelyn officially has not 1 but 2 teeth! She wouldn't let me take a picture of them, but they are there. The girls love to brush their new teeth. I imagine the bristles feel nice on their gums. It's pretty funny to watch how excited they get when they see their toothbrush. Hopefully they will continue this healthy habit for years and years to come.

Paint

The girls had their first painting adventure the other day. The original goal was to make some hand prints which quickly degenerated into just making some smears.

They were having some good messy fun until Madelyn took a bite of paint... it is non-toxic and not harmful but apparently doesn't taste very good. And honestly I don't think green is a good shade of lipstick for anyone.

They made five smeary/messy pictures that we turned into cards and had some fun doing it. I call that success.

Pasta!

Ok so the girls weren't really eating ravioli but I couldn't find a song about ground turkey spaghetti sauce with whole grain penne pasta... close enough. :)

Grand Rapids Children's Museum

We were trying to think of something fun to do while Craig's parents were in town so we ended up at the Grand Rapids Children's Museum yesterday. The original plan was to go to a local minor league baseball game but it was 95 degrees out so we opted for something air conditioned instead. The girls cooperated/played with lots of fun stuff for about 2 hours. That's pretty much as long as you can do anything when you're 1, right? I know they can't fully appreciate these kinds of things but I like taking any opportunities we can to expose them to new fun environments and experiences. Plus adults need to have a little fun every once in a while too...


The mirrors were a big winner with the girls.

This area is all made of rubber, the girls were having fun squishing it so we decided to let them sit and play. This has quickly become my favorite picture from the trip. I can so see Madelyn thinking... seriously, what would make you think I want to sit here?

Appropriately enough Georgia the little monkey is climbing the tree in the Curious George exhibit.

The big bubbles were almost as cool as the mirrors. I think Georgia popped the one forming around us the second after this photo.

All in all we had a great time and I can't wait to take the girls back in a couple of years.

Happy (belated) 4th of July!

Wow I have been a blog slacker lately. So first and foremost in honor of the 4th I would like to say a special thank you to my brother Kris. Kris is a Staff Sergeant in the Air Force and is also an Operation Iraqi Freedom war vet. We love him so much are so proud of him and thankful for his bravery and strength.

Ok... enough of embarrassing Kris. It has been more like Christmas around here than the 4th of July. It has been a marathon of family and fun and we loved it.

First wave.... Uncle Kris and (soon to be) Aunt Chezney came to visit. This was our first time meeting the future sister in law and she passed with flying colors. We like love her tons already! We also got to meet her adorable little guy Christopher. He and Georgia bonded as they crawled and chattered all over the place.


Chezney and I enjoying a picnic in the park with all the little ones.

Georgia and Christopher had a blast in the tunnel.

Madelyn

After a few days with us they headed to my parent's place. On Saturday we joined them there for a great extended family get together. The girls met lots of family and we got a chance to catch up with out of town relatives. It was wonderful.


Uncle Willy is my Dad's brother and the youngest of 11 and is apparently teaching Madelyn all about being the baby of the family...

Christopher, Chezney and Craig enjoying some good conversation in the shade. I think Craig was giving her the inside dish on the Dolehanty family.

Saying goodbye to Grandma after a couple of post fireworks tears.

On Sunday we headed to Craig's parent's place. Uncle Chris and Aunt Liz were in town and got lots of playtime with the babies. Grandma and Grandpa got a chance to show the girls off while they watched the girls so Craig and I could spend some time lounging on the boat. The girls didn't appreciate fireworks Saturday or Sunday but other than that it was perfect.

 Grandma, Madelyn and Aunt Pat

Georgia learned a new trick this weekend. Uncle Chris shows her "Arms Up"

 I need to get a video of this because after she raises her arms everyone claps... so now she claps for herself. Too cute.


"Aunt Liz, I swear I'm not tired..... just let me stand here."

 We had such a great time seeing everyone and are missing you all already. Looks like we're headed on some road trips to Pennsylvania and Arkansas soon.