we leave for our second beach trip of the summer tomorrow morning! we're heading back to seaside with jon's family this time around. in the past, we've visited sarasota & captiva island with the dandurands, but jon's been insisting that they see seaside, so we're really looking forward to going back! [now that i've got the girls & their million items packed up...]

before we leave though, i have been meaning to write down some of the sweet things that the girls have been doing lately. time goes so quickly & before i know it, the things that i see & hear from them each day, will turn into new habits. 

we'll start with eloise, who took her first steps tonight! it was the cutest thing ever & she was SO proud of herself! she did it a few times, so it looks like this is the beginning of us having a little toddler on our hands! 

eloise's latest thing is to point to whatever she wants & either say "this please" or "more please" ... & really, how do you turn that down? she's learning how to be sneaky about it & ask for things that we normally wouldn't give into ;)

her newest words include "baby" & "puppy" & she makes 2 animal sounds- "woof woof" & "whoo whoo" for an owl :) she's obsessed with this book we have called peek-a-moo & would happily sit & have us read it to her 20 times in a row :)

she's been climbing the stairs faster than i can blink & i swear she's a cat with 9 lives because she's [knock on wood] never fallen & gotten hurt despite the questionable positions we've found her in- things that with one child, we were absolutely on top of :)

as for lucy- she's super into needing to sit & "just relax". she cracks me up with her since of time- everything she tells us about was either "yesterday" or "a few days ago". this morning she said "when i was a baby yesterday, i nursed from mommy!" & usually after she says something like that, jon & i will say "yep.. a few days ago" so now she'll add "when i was a baby yesterday...a few days ago..."

her imagination is HUGE & her heart is bigger. she's terrified of bugs & is way too curious about weird things like snakes, tunnels [drains] & boo-boo's [she's really just obsessed with band-aids]. she loves eloise & tells us that often. she gets a little too intense with her hugs & kisses for her sister :) 

her latest obsession is getting her hair done & doing my hair. she'll sit at her little mermaid vanity & ask me to cut her hair with her "safety scissors", blow-dry, hairspray & curl. then she'll ask me to sit in the seat & she'll get me all prettied up- this can easily go back & forth for 15 minutes. we've had some serious talks about how we don't really use real safety scissors on our hair, now do we? :)

these girls are the best- they are so much fun & at such great ages! 

we went to a funky mama concert the other day- i first met krista when i was 10 years old & she was playing maria in the sound of music. she sang in jon's & my wedding, and is a true example of someone beautiful & kind from the inside, out. she performs children's rock & roll around KC & both girls love dancing to her music! we had such a fun morning :)

& for the road... 

wishing you a sunny week!

-ivy

strawberry ice cream social

eloise's first birthday party was this past saturday. it was SO much fun, despite the ridiculously chilly weather! the chill didn't stop the kids from playing in the water table in the yard for half the party though :)

i made up the invites a couple of months ago, and while i don't really consider myself a "crafty" person at all- i have ideas & sometimes i can figure out a way to actually create them :) we tried to keep the party a bit smaller, realizing that many of our friends, particularly our friends without kids, have other ways to fill their saturday afternoons than attending a first birthday party :) i'm learning things with the more birthday parties i host-

we made her thank you's in advance, too :)

jon's dad [GDad] came over early & snapped some great shots of the set-up-

we tied these balloons to little garden planters stuffed with strawberry candies & called it good for favors-

& my mom insisted on making these strawberry party hats- they were a hit! [she made a few boys ones, sans lace, too:)]

fun banner that read "berry happy birthday eloise"!

strawberry shortcake bar with homemade shortcakes, strawberry filling & whipped cream-

strawberry ice cream station-

eloise's mini-cake

this highchair tulle skirt was used for lucy's first birthday party, too!

my mom has started the tradition of making a door wreath for each of her grandchildren's birthday parties- i have lucy's first two saved & will cherish this one, too ... & given that it's strawberry season, i plan to leave it hanging on our front door for several weeks :)

happy birthday to you, eloise! good thing big sister was there to help blow out the candle & make a wish :) [lucy's decided she's a big fan of having a little sister who has birthdays...]

eloise enjoyed the buttercream frosting most of all :)

lucy & aunt alli after the bash-

& we've started a family tradition with lucy, and now eloise, that we ask for a book or toy donation to the lee ann britain infant development center for birthdays, rather than gifts. after lucy's first birthday party gift overwhelment, jon & i realized how important it is to us that we teach our children the importance of giving back to our community. & birthdays are a great opportunity to give back & feel so good about it!

eloise & i brought the goods by the britain center this morning afer her one year appointment- we are really so grateful to everyone who joined in donating books & toys to this great group of kids!

& for the road- GDad snapped a pic of our brand new landscaping! with the exception of the magnolia tree in the front (which i am so SO excited to blossom!), all of the plants & grasses are native to kansas-

it was such a special day for our special girl. i can't believe eloise is one already! where does the time go?

xoxo,

-ivy

my eloise turned ONE & we had the party to prove it- although, i'm waiting to go through all of the photos before doing her big birthday post. 

in the meantime- here's what the girls have been up to :)

the weather has been super rainy & chilly the past few days [& frankly i'm loving it & the indoor time & cuddles that come with it!], but prior to that the girls were interested in nothing but playing in the water table jon built for a couple of hours each day! [lucy especially loves that it's positioned next to our "taste garden" of herbs- every few minutes i'll see her snatch off a basil or mint leaf to chew:)]

lucy & daddy park date :)

meme watched eloise while mama got my hair did at the beauty shop :)

lucy has been super into building castles- it occupied two full days during the rain! i LOVE the imagination of a 32 month old!

eloise outgrew her first pair of ballet slippers! she has literally worn these just about every day since february, so i had to commemorate them in her room :) i think they eventually may turn into a christmas ornament- lucy's saddle shoes that she wore when she first started walking were hanging on the tree last year-

we went with gold slippers this time for a fun summer twist- & classic pink, too!

meme surprised the girls with this super fun pool for eloise's birthday- & of course, lucy is really excited about "her own" personal swimming pool..... :)

it is so fun- it has a water spout & the girls played for a good solid hour & would have kept going that first night if bedtime wasn't calling their names-

eloise turned ONE on thursday! we had planned to play in the water all day, but the rain kept us indoors. my mom came over & we spent the day baking shortcakes for the party & just enjoying this sweet girl & her BIG personality!

daddy took us all to dinner at texas roadhouse- we wanted somewhere the girls could have fun & make a mess, and the waiters & waitresses do a texas two-step every 15 minutes or so that the girls LOVE!

jon completely finished the bunks- ladder, address, guard-rails- & they were the biggest hit of the birthday party amongst the kids!

AND sweet e turned ONE & had a strawberry ice cream social to celebrate the occasion- post to follow :)

xoxo, 

-ivy

we have had such cold & rainy weather for the end of may. it looks like it might rain this afternoon & tomorrow is a one-hundred percent chance for rain. i was driving by our neighborhood pool this morning & someone was swimming- it's 65 & completely cloudy. i think everyone is itching for warmer weather & some sun! jon's been busy with several projects he's hoping to complete this holiday weekend, including building the girls a water table for the deck. i didn't know what to think when he told me he wanted to build one, but it is looking fabulous! he literally used 2x4's to build a table, which he's painting aqua & has sized to fit a large rectangular tub of water in the middle. it'll be an awesome way to buy me a good 30 minutes or so :) both the girls are such fish- they love anything having to do with water play! & for eloise's birthday, my mom's getting the girls a big blow-up pool that has a little slide & spout for the yard. i am so looking forward to summer mornings at our neighborhood pool & afternoons playing in the yard with water toys! lots of photos to follow :)

despite the chilly weather, we went to the farmstead with my friend kim & her [seriously awesome] kids, harrison & gretchen, last week-

kim, lucy & harrison digging for crystals :) we hadn't done this part before, but it's harrison's favorite ... & now, lucy's, too! she's been matching her treasures to the rock-key they gave her all week :)

big kids feeding the goats-

& another first- lucy got to ride a pony! her first question was "where's the cutie stamp?" [for any my little pony fans out there...:)] such a big, brave girl!

eloise & gretchen were total rockstars- they happily snacked & hung out in their strollers, taking in all of the sights & sounds!

another way to buy me some time- we brought the ball-pit up from the basement for few days, which worked like a charm until the novelty wore off :)

caterpillar crafting!

taking advantage of the little bit of sun we've gotten-

& yesterday was watch-week at dance class! lucy earned a medal & meme brought her a flower & balloon :) i was so proud of how well she did- without hesitation, she performed in front of a classroom of people. for the most part, she watched her daddy out of the corner of her eye to make sure his eyes were on her :) eloise danced to the music & desperately wanted to be one of the big girls!

she was precious! here are a couple of my favorite video clips :)

crossing our fingers for great cook-out weather this memorial day!

-ivy