My day in Instagrams

Well, my husband surprised me with an iPhone (yes, I know almost everyone else on the planet has one), but to me it was a big deal.  Secretly, I think he likes the fact I am now on the "Mac" wagon.  What an amazing phone, I finally get why people love them so much.  Here are some snapshots I took using Instagram.  Still trying to figure out how to just dump the pics from my phone to blog in an easier way, but not to bad for my 1st day with this very smart phone.  Yesterday, our day began, with Ella getting up earlier than Jessie after not having slept through the night (up 3 times, for anyone wondering), then we all ate breakfast & got dressed to head to the mall, the mall was even better than usual: (1) we played on the indoor slides/play area (2)we had lunch at Chick-a-fil as Jessie now says (3) we looked at all the Christmas decorations in every store (4) we rode the mini-train inside the mall near where Santa will be (I might add Santa starts taking requests for Christmas tomorrow--Nov. 9th, seems early, maybe not?).  Then after they were both good & tired we came home to find a package had arrived for the girls from Grandma & Papa Passineau, Jessie is now understanding that most of the packages that come are for them from grandparents & she immediately said she got a gift.  We opened the box to find, socks, tights, & some fun Pooh themed juice bottles inside.  To them it was exciting.  After that....naps for all!  Here's the play-by-play in cell phone pics.  I will say taking cell phone pics is much easier than dragging along an actual camera, the quality, well, not the best, but you get the point. Enjoy & have a wonderful weekend!

This is how she woke up...talk about a bad hair day

Playing at the mall on the indoor slides...they love it!

Girl's lunch date has a whole new meaning these days

On the train, they had a blast, wonder how many times we will do this little trip

Opening their mail:

The Tigger juice bottle was a big hit with this tired little girl

For those collage lovers:

Baby, it's cold outside

I'm bummed.  It's getting cold!  Here are a few snapshots of Ella I had to take indoors the other day when she was looking adorable.  Who will she look like??  Those grey eyes & striking features, some say she looks like us both, while others say she looks just like daddy.  I guess time will tell!  What is she doing these days? Well, for starters, she has become obsessed with the potty.  Trying to go potty on sister's little potty, taking her diaper off, & fully in the phase I call "lil' potty flusher"--no seriously, you will hurt her feelings if you don't let her practice flushing the potty.  Needless to say we must keep all the bathroom doors firmly shut in our home in order to avoid any potty accidents or incidents.  She's eating less than she was a few weeks ago so I think she's not growing right now & I have noticed that some of the 24 month clothing she was wearing fine seems loose around the waist, probably from the ear infection/sickness.  She does not seem to mind having her hair fixed & will actually stand beside me while I put it in all manner of pig tail combinations.  She is getting better about keeping bows in for limited times, which is great for photo ops during the holidays .  She is so very verbal also & sometimes I'm amazed by all that she can say.  We are still working on colors & shapes, but she's close with colors.  I sometimes feel bad that she doesn't know all her colors like Jessie did at 18 months, but she knows a lot of things Jessie didn't at this age also, so I guess it all levels out in the end.  Because Jessie goes to "school" on Friday mornings, Ella and I have had some time to bond one on one which has been a huge blessing.  She is such a funny, sweet little girl--we spend a good amount of time playing & reading books while Jessie is away, & she thinks it's hilarious to run as fast as she can and jump at me.  I love it, although it does tire us both out!  Additionally, we found a little story time to go to near our home while Jessie is in school & although she may be one of the younger ones in the group, we enjoy this special time together.  Hard to believe my beautiful Ella will be 18 months old so soon.  Have a wonderful day ;)

I can never resist an opportunity to do a sepia/matte effect on pics, thought these looked nice that way

She was looking at the turkey in this one (yep, the semi-tame turkey is still roaming around our yard from time to time)

Pretty neat to capture her reflection in the glass & the fog on the cold window

Very dynamic is you ask me ;)

2 1/2 going on 15

Do you ever take a pic of your kids & all of sudden a glimpse of the future just strikes you??  Maybe that's just me, but when I saw Jessie in this sweater & with the hair bow I feel like I got a glimpse of her as a teenager.  Sometimes her face is so expressive & she has the most intense looks I just feel like I see her as a teenager.  I pray for both my girls everyday and especially for their teenage years...God help us with two girls in this world.  What will she be like when she's 15??  I believe she'll be a pleaser, as this is her nature, but also defiant, she wants to find her own way to do things already.  It will be interesting to see to say the least, glad for now she's still my little girlie!  Enjoy some pics of my 2 1/2 year old looking so big & have a wonderful day :)

I see teenager attitude all over this one

The beautiful McGrath family

Recently, I had the opportunity to play photographer with some of our dear friends.  They are leaving us due to a job change & will be moving to Virginia.  Although, our small group will not be the same without all 3 of them, I know God has big plans for these folks.  Their daughter is one of Jessie's little friends & we will greatly miss this beautiful little girl.  To be honest, I am sad my girls will no longer be influenced by her (I guess that is selfish, but it is true).  As their going away present, our group got them a large 11X14 print of one of the family photos I took in a beautiful black frame with mat & a slightly smaller framed print of their daughter.  I am honored that photos I took will hang in their new home.  It makes me happy to think that they like them enough to display them.  Enjoy some pics of our dear friends.  We love you McGrath family & you will be missed!

Yep, I stood out in a stream on a rock to take this one (I think anyone that knows me, knows if I get the opportunity I am going for it)...I really like it!