Tie Dye Dancer

Paige off to dance the other night in her full tie dye apparel!

Apple - Pies

Apple Pie in an apple, Paige's choice for dessert last night. Fun to make and even more fun to eat. She helped me scoop out the insides of the apples and mix up the filling. Paige's favorite part was cutting the crust out and making the lattice topping. They were so yummy and the kids loved having their own apple!

Twins

My grandma always told me how lucky I was to have sisters. She was an only child and wanted a sister more than anything. I have said this over and over again, but Lindy and Paige have been having tons of twin moments lately. I just catch glimpses of them and see little faces and it hits me all over again that there are two of them. Its been happening even more so than when they were a couple of years younger.

I think part of it is they are growing up so much. Even though they are definitely their own person they are still connected to each other in many ways. They spend so much time together..by choice. Even though they have their own BFF's, they will always be each other's number one person.

Twins

I wonder what its like to always have someone by your side growing up. Who has been with you since before you arrived here. Who goes through everything you do at the same time (braces etc).Who likes pretty much the same things you do except maybe your personal taste in clothes!

I have read lots on twins and they pretty much all say that next to their spouses, it is the closest and best relationship they ever have in their lives. That seems pretty amazing.

Lately Lindy and Paige are having more "twin" moments than ever. I can't really explain what they are until they happen. It's usually when they are both excited about something and talking at the same time, saying the same thing. They look the same and have the same expressions. It's just a twin thing!

I think its pretty cute to watch them talk and hang out especially when they can't see me!

Glasses!

Paige has glasses! Really cute, sophisticated glasses! She has been complaining of headaches daily for quite awhile. She already has migraines but these were headaches that with some Motrin would go away. With her eye history she was long overdue for an exam so off we headed to Children's 10 days ago where it was determined that yes indeed, she did need glasses.
We did have fun choosing frames, what a huge selection for kids today. Her one requirement - no pink! That was definitely the most challenging part of the experience since about 90% of the frames have pink somewhere on them. But they can order anything, so after trying on about 15 pairs she settled on a style and ordered the color she wanted. I think she made a fantastic choice!
She doesn't need to wear them all the time; reading, TV, computer. Enough that she will be hauling them around the house, hopefully not losing them!
She was most excited about the cute Vera Bradley case I gave her for Christmas, pictures of that to follow soon.
I know she is kinda proud since she was willing to pose for a quick photo shoot....

Paige and Daddy with his" readers". The only 2 in the family who need glasses!

Pug Love

Paige and Oliver

 We are crazy about our new family members! It amazes me the instant attachment we all have had with them. Thankfully both Quincy and Oliver are very happy to get any kind of attention. The girls especially are always babying them and helping them to "dance". But they love being with people and don't complain a bit!

 Ollie

Bubble Wrap

It's so Paige, a summer cast. When we were waiting for the doctor to come in and check her arm we realized she has broken her arm all three times in May. The first time was on Ethan's birthday. Fortunately we were not having a huge celebration on his birthday that year.

If you are looking for Paige next May you will find her wrapped in bubble wrap in her room. Bill said he's putting her in the end of April and she can come out the first of June. She can except visitors, food, gifts, etc but we are taking protective measures.

Honestly, she is being a pretty good sport! The pain has for the most part gone away. Now its just the inconvenience of having one arm for the beginning of summer and dealing with the heat and a cast. I will say this waterproof set up rocks. No more wrapping her arm at night to shower and the pool was fabulous for her. Wish they had come up with that years ago!

Splinted x2

Rachel and Paige Splinted

It was a busy week last week, what with Paige having to go to Urgent Care three times for her broken arm! Starting with the Dance Recital, she came home took off her costume and went outside to roller blade. Fell down, hurt her arm. I really didn't think much of it until the next day when her elbow was not visible! She was so swollen I couldn't see her elbow. She also couldn't bend her arm when she woke up. Trip #1 to Urgent Care (thank you Children's for putting an Urgent Care 3 minutes from my house!). X-ray's show not broken but it's Paige, which means she could be broken but not showing that yet due to swelling. Just like 3 years ago when she broke her wrist.

We leave with a splint and are told to return at the end of the week for repeat films. Friday afternoon we return and are given the all clear, no break, swelling is gone, splint is off, we return to happy, fun, summer play.

The next night we are at the park for the boys Shakespeare production and Paige falls playing of all things, Red Rover! Swelling wrist and tears = Urgent Care. Three hours later and we leave with a splint and instructions to go to the orthopaedist that week for casting. I know where that is since this would be the third time she has broken the same arm!

Two days later, the girls good friend Rachel, shows up with her splint! Same arm, different bone, but a broken arm friend. Someone to hang out with when you can't do what everyone else is doing. I felt so bad for Rachel but if she was going to break her arm she had good timing! It's always better to have someone to go through things with.

Here's to a great summer! We are off to a bang!

Casted!

Jar of Hearts

Paige is back in the dance game with Lindy and Erin. She started in competition last year and decided that she didn't want to compete. After a year off she went back to ballet and I am so glad that she did. Since she has taken dance for 5 years she just picked up where she had left off. She really liked the lyrical style and is planning on going back to competition next year if there is a team for her.
It really shows how even though Lindy and Paige like doing things together they both move at their own pace. Lindy always tries everything out and Paige hangs back and watches. Then if it looks like its fun and Lindy likes it, then Paige does it. Its been like this since they were babies and we watched Lindy lead the way in walking, teething, talking etc...
It would be so nice to have that built in buddy to watch and reassure you that everything would be fine before you have to do it. Its been one of the twin things I love to watch.
Great job Paige! You are a wonderful dancer and we are really proud of you! Good luck next year!

Finger Knitting

Paige and Lindy are learning to crochet and one of the things they have learned is finger knitting. It is so cute to watch them with their huge balls of yarn sitting and making scarves and chatting away! Paige was very excited to make a scarf for her Mimi who proudly wore it to work and got many compliments.

Daddy's Girl At Heart

Paige was in her typical goofy mood last night. Bill's holiday vacation officially started at 2pm yesterday when he walked in the door! Yea! Five days of holiday with Daddy and we are all so excited to have him home. Fall is such a busy time of year at work with budgets and we look forward to spending time together over Christmas. No kids activities, no work or additional responsibilities.
Paige can be such a Daddy's girl. They are so alike....

Sewing Fun

Lindy and Paige have wanted to learn to sew for years. Not being a sewer myself I have not gotten very far with this project. This session at co-op our piano teacher who is also a very accomplished seamstress is teaching a basic hand sewing class. Here is the project from last week where they learned how to do the blanket stitch. I see many sewing gifts in the future!

9th Birthday Celebration

Getting caught up! Here are pictures of Lindy and Paige's birthday celebration last weekend. They did a great job getting their birthday to last about a week and this was the end of the festivities! We had a family cake made by my friend Angie, per the girls request of horses with a pond and a fence. It turned out better than they expected and it was soooo good with Chocolate Mousse filling. They wanted a quiet little family party and choose the food for lunch and had their grandparents and aunts and uncle over for the afternoon. Nine years has flown by and I know I say this all the time but it is really neat to watch their twinship as they become older. They were so cute planning their little party and they never complain about sharing the day with each other. They chat about what "we want for our cake" and what they should pick out for party supplies. It is really sweet to watch them growing up!