esskayelle

swim swim swim!

the summer is winding down, which is hard to believe in this 90 degree heat.  all i can think about is how/when i can get to a pool and swim before the air turns crisp and the leaves start to change. 

which leads to this post.  i'm proud to say that my kids are total water babies, totally taking after yours truly. 

as a result of water love, i enrolled both of them in swim classes over the summer.  in the 5 or so weeks that d was in her swim class, she learned how to jump in, swim to the surface, and float on her back.  a basic survival skill.  a relief.  don't mind the crazy cheering at the end.  i can't help it.

e has learned to be completely fearless in the water, and is definitely on his way to swimming on his own, without the use of floaties.  i am so amazed.

don't throw out that dress! :: a girl's dress that has lasted 3+ years

dillan was given an amazingly cute oilily dress for her first birthday by a dear family friend.  we have used it every year of her life since then!  what once was a very cute dress, has turned into a very cute tunic top.  most dresses only last me a couple of years, due to the sleeve restrictions, but this particular dress seems to fit like a charm even 3 years later!  i get endless compliments on this particular dress due to the crisp white linen paired with an incredible embroidered design. 

so before you throw out your little girl's dress, think about how it might look as a top, over a long sleeve t in the colder weather, paired with jeans or leggings.  or better yet, when buying presents for your friends' kids, think how it might grow with them over time.  ;)

{taken 10.2007 :: d@about 2 years}

{taken 06.2010 :: d@4 years}

iPhone 4 :: week one

fred recently got the iPhone 4 through work, and thought it would be a good idea for me to upgrade to the 4 for the purpose of video and pictures.  for those of you that don't know, the 4 has HD vid and a 5 megapixel camera.  i usually used my point and shoot for video, so the upgrade will be handy.

today, i decided to take advantage of the facetime feature.  there are two cameras on either side of the phone, so that you can take vid of yourself OR video chat {have facetime} with another iPhone 4 user via wi-fi.  before dillan's nap, cozy in her bed, we call fred...the face he sees when he accepts our facetime request is his lovely dilly bean.  fred continues to take us on a tour of his office, showing us the outdated pictures of his family in their frames, and the view out of his downtown office window {woah! appah's in a skyscraper!}.  once finished, we say good-night, and end the conversation. 

immediately, dillan looks at me with the cutest look of wonder and says:  "Mommy!  That was so amazing!  I got to see Appah's work!...Remember when you said that I can go see Appah's work someday?  I didn't even have to go there!  His office is pretty neat, and I got to see pictures of winter!"  {pictures of his family in the winter of 08, note to self: give new pictures to husband}

i can get used to this facetime stuff.  now if only all my family members would get the iPhone 4...i'll settle with one of my family members getting their video chat on their computer to work {you know who you are}.

now wouldn't seeing this face in the middle of a work day make all things brighter?

-taken with the iPhone 3GS-

my little emergent writer

i can't believe that dillan is already reading and writing.  it's the same joy a parent gets when he/she sees your child starting to talk. 

with evan starting to talk, and dillan starting to become more literate.  i'm overwhelmed with cute moments!!!!

this past week, dillan has been in this phase of making signs.  we will be in the middle of playing a game, when all of a sudden, she will stop and write a rule, post it up where we are playing, and then make sure i read it and follow it.  i have no idea why this has come about.  it's quite endearing.

while playing a dancing game, dillan stopped to write this sign:

"no babies allowed. big sisters game."  poor evan. 

{below} a rule for the same game

"take off your socks, take of this apron" she was wearing an apron at the time, and wanted it taken off.  hahaha.

{below} a post on her bed.

"girl's bed no boys allowed." specifically, evan. not daddy.

{below} posted on her bedroom door, the bedroom she shares with her little brother.

"girl's room. no boys allowed." notice the "X" over the picture of the boy.

{below} while playing our homemade "tetherball" game, i started kicking it all fancy with my feet.  dillan did not like this new style.  stopped playing, and quickly whipped up a new sign.

 

"tether ball with your hands."  boy, i don't get to have any fun around here.

:)

do you know your senses?

in the car with dillan and evan, enjoying some tunes.

listening to the veggietales version of "in the secret" with matt redman.  

then a dillism creeps out...

d:  mommy, i think the kids are singing about senses.

me:  {i don't understand what she's saying so i respond} whose singing about what?

d:  the kids are singing about senses!  {she knows that i don't understand what she's saying and is starting to get annoyed with me}

me: the kids are singing about senses?

d: yeah, touching, hearing, seeing...

me:  {still don't understand, so i start to listen to the music}  

music lyrics:  i want to know You, i want to hear Your voice, i want to know You more.  i want to touch You, i want to see Your face, i want to know You more

me:  {i finally get it}  oh dillan, you're right!  they are singing about senses.  dillan, you know what?  you are soooo smart.

d:  why?  because i know the five senses?  {she then lists them off again...}

oh my dillan.

dillisms :: 3 years and 5 months

the other day we were playing pretend

me:  wow, dillan!  your house is so beautiful!

d:  thanks!  i decorated it with bendaroos.

me:  oh!  you did?  what are bendaroos?

d:  they are hard strings!

the only exposure dillan has had with bendaroos, are the commercials.  boy, do they know how to appeal to kids!  this is what they are, in case you're wondering. bendaroos link

her growing vocabulary still kills me.

me:  okay, dillan which bathroom do you want to use, mommy's or yours?

d:  mommy and daddy's

me:  okay, let's go!

d:  actually mommy, i want to go to my bathroom instead.

i've been trying to teach her the gospel message, but it's really hard to explain to a 3YO.  anyway, we were driving home from preschool, and dillan randomly says:

d:  mommy, i want to go to earth and find Jesus and give Him a hug.

me:  dillan, you are on earth.

d:  then i want Jesus to come to earth to find me and give me a hug.

me:  well, when you hug anyone, you are hugging Jesus because Jesus is in our hearts.

d:  really?  but i want to find Jesus and give him a hug.

the conversation went on and on, i was struggling, so i found a distraction and left it there.  :P

she wanted me to paint her toes today, because she's starting a swimming class {i know, so girly}...after she chose the right color, she told me to put away the big water and the little purple.

i understood that the little purple meant the small bottle of purple nail polish, but i didn't know why she wanted me to put away my cup of water.  so i moved it and asked, "you want me to move my water?"

she said, "no mommy, the water next to the big purple".

i look at the big bottle of purple nail polish, and next to it is a clear topcoat.  ahhh, it does look like water.  

i need to keep writing the things that she says.  they make me smile.

would you like to play with me?

"would you like to play with me?"

"hi, my name is dillan, what is your name?  would you like to play with me?"

this is the most common statement dillan makes whenever we go to the park.  it doesn't matter where...she is always determined to find a friend to play with.

"mommy, i wonder what kind of friend i will find today."  was the statement she made while walking to the park today.  

if she finds a friend (someone within 18 months and 12 years of age) and they either ignore her or reject her proposal.  she get soooOOOooo sad.  she will stand in place, head down, frown, and start to develop tears in her eyes.  sometimes she will ask me, "mommy, why don't they want to play with me?"  it is times like this that have made me into the most innovative thinker when it comes to a worthy distraction.  which 99.9% of the time, works.  whew.  

anyway.

if you'd like to hear more.  today's story was amusing.  

she seriously makes me so proud sometimes.  

she was atop the playground tower, and a 7YO boy was climbing up the same tower.  dillan proceeds to bend down over the ladder in which he is climbing and encourage him, "wow, you are really great at climbing!  you are doing a great job!"  

the boy loves it.  

once he's made it to the top, dillan offers her proposal.  

d: "would you like to play with me?"

boy:  "okay."

d: "my name is dillan, what is your name?"

boy:  "allen"

d: "oh, allen." points to the spiral pole thingy, "i think that you can go down that, because you are big."

allen proceeds to go down the spiral pole thingy

d: "wow!"

oh my dillan.  she is so cute.  

she is only like this with kids, she takes a much longer to warm up to adults.  isn't that so funny?

just for kicks, a picture of my babies taking a milk break.

meet mr. bunny

we met my brother and family at the mall last saturday.

coincidentally, lauri, my SIL's sister was there with her family too! 

mr. easter bunny was around for a photo-op, and we had to take it.    this is the reason they are not dressed appropriately.

i felt sad that little lucas and leah ended up on the sides, so i made leah hold evan's hand and lucas, the cutie, naturally put his arm around the bunny.  so cute. 

i was so afraid that mr. bunny was going to drop evan...it was clear that his depth perception was way off.  after we took our picture, i told the kids to thank the easter bunny and give him a hug.  i don't know which kid asked, but someone asked where mr. bunny's nose was.  mr. bunny, acting his part, was listening and proceeded to point to his nose, the nose that exists beneath the mask!  he was pointing to his mouth!  keeping myself from cracking up, i lightly tapped mr. bunny's nose and said, "oh, there's his nose!"  to which mr. bunny followed suit and pointed to his bunny nose.  the kids looked very confused.  :)

all in a day's laugh

evan was all laughs yesterday. 

throughout the day, this is what we saw:

:: morning ::

:: late-morning ::

:: dinner-time ::

the kid loves his big sister so much. it is the cutest thing to watch their relationship blossom as both of them grown and learn and fall more in love with one another. 

i am so blessed. 

the snow is here to stay

it's finally warmed up to the balmy twenties.  i decided to take advantage of the sun and warmth by taking dillan out for some snowtime fun.

it is a pain in the butt to get two kids out of the house and snow-ready...especially with an immobile six month old,  but it was well worth the fun.

if i did this everyday, i would be in the best shape of my life. 

here are some pix to enjoy:

:: the look of pure joy ::

:: my snow bunnies ::

:: SNOW!!!! ::

here are a few more:
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