Happy Birthday, Aimy!

Two years old already! Can't believe how fast time has gone by.

We had a fun day today. Aimy enjoyed opening her presents and, as you will see, had a great time eating her birthday éclair. And she has been asking to read her new books as soon as she sees them, so they are definitely a big hit.

Holidays!

It's been a bit crazy here since I last posted. I had a friend visiting until Carlos's last day of work, then the girls and I all caught colds just before we went to visit Carlos's family for Christmas, and the day after we got back, Aimy spiked a fever and we took her to see the doctor and it turns out she also has an ear infection. Needless to say, I haven't had much time to get online!

I've taken a ton of pictures in the meantime, and I think I'll have to divide them into a few separate entries. I'll put the Christmas ones here and get to the others later. Aimy is still a bit young to understand what was going on, but was much more aware of the tree this year, and though she helped put decorations on (and put a bunch on the same branches, because it looked prettier that way!) she stays away from the tree most of the time. I'm not sure if it was because we were clear about not touching the tree, or if the needles were too pointy for her, or she thought it was too pretty to touch... maybe a combination of all three.

Picking out a tree

All bundled up for the tree hunt

Pretty lights!

Loved the beads - they make a
great necklace.

Putting her first ornaments on the tree

Aimy kept coming over to this side to put the ornaments
on the branches here...

At one time, there were 5 on
this branch!

Even the baby got into it

Telling me how much she liked it

All done!

Our visit with the in-laws was nice, though since we were all sick (Carlos was pretty congested too for a few days, though fortunately he never ended up being as sick as the rest of us) it was pretty tiring. Alixe didn't sleep well at all, and she was up several times during the night until our second night at home. Fortunately now that we are home and she is feeling better, she is back to sleeping through the night. Aimy slept longer and was more irritable than usual, but she enjoyed having time with her cousins, and especially loves the stuffed Mickey they gave her for Christmas. She definitely didn't understand why there were presents to open on Christmas Day, though this year she figured out that it is fun to tear off the wrapping paper and play with what is underneath!

Opening presents

All excited

Mickey Mouse!

Check out that tearing technique

Excited about the Minnie Mouse
cutlery

More interested in grabbing
the present than opening it!

We got back home on the 26th and have been trying to take it easy, but Aimy in particular has been having a tough time. She was pretty miserable until today, what with her ear bothering her, but though she's still a bit crankier than normal, she too is getting back to her usual self. Poor thing hates taking her medicine, but she has heard me say "Good girl, well done!" so often when she finishes taking it that now she has taken to repeating it through her sobs when she has finished... breaks my heart a little every time!

We're planning on taking it easy for New Year's Eve... I wonder if we'll even be awake to ring in the new year! Hope you have been enjoying the holidays - I'm thinking of you all!

December Fun

It's been a busy start of the month. Carlos has had lots of meetings and still has more to come, which has meant I spend more time looking after the girls and the house. It will be great when he's finally on holidays - this stretch has seemed longer than usual, probably because of all of those late nights.

We bought and decorated our tree this past weekend, though we're not quite done decorating the house. There's still the wreath to put on the door and the fake garland to put on the bookcase. But it shouldn't take long. I'll post all the pictures when we're done.

It's also been cold lately - frost in the morning for the past week, which is a little unusual. Still, it's nice to have sunshine during the day instead of rain or clouds - I prefer it this way! It's much nicer for going for walks.

I've been trying to take lots of photos but Aimy prefers trying to use the camera or look at the photos I've taken than stay in front of it. Still, I've gotten a few good ones!

Playing with Aimy's hair

Hilarious. She wasn't a huge
fan of the elastics though

Eating yogurt. No help wanted
or needed

First time on the swings, and
absolutely thrilled!

Deer in the headlights

Post-bath hairstyle thanks to
Daddy and the blowdryer

Sisters

The progression of photos that resulted in the above good
shot: legs in the air

Trying to show the baby her nose

Distracted by a toy

In With The New

It's been a busy time lately - it's getting towards the end of the first term for Carlos at school, so he has been working away at report cards and doing more marking than normal, and the girls are so active that I don't get much time to come online in the evening because I'm just pooped by the end of the day! Alixe has finally started to sleep regularly through the night, though we did have to let her cry at 4am a few times before she figured out that she was tired and not hungry. She has also started eating baby food, and seems to be enjoying everything she has tried (so far, we've given her carrots, peas, pumpkin, zucchini, pear, apple and banana). She's got a big appetite too - in general, she gets through half the jar before I even realize how much she's ingested! Her bottom two teeth are through as well, and she is reaching for objects more readily (though if Aimy sees what she is reaching for, big sister decides she wants that toy too and takes it away! Ah, siblings...)

I love tummy time!

Testing out the spoon

First bite ever of solid food!

Weird texture, Mum!

Licking the spoon - I think she likes it!

Smiling at me while I feed her (though don't be deceived -
most meals she is complaining between spoonfuls
because I'm not feeding her quickly enough!

Smiling for mummy

Little sweetheart

Trying to sit up!

Speaking of siblings, Aimy has also been making lots of progress. She is saying please and thank you quite often, though sometimes not in the same language! When we go out, she knows to speak to people in French (and will sometimes say "Bonjour" and "Au revoir" to the cashiers at the grocery store). She also says "I love you" to her sister and tries to comfort her when she cries, either by rubbing her belly or rocking her in her little chair. It's very sweet. She hates it when we try to feed her anything and really loves eating her yogurt by herself. Brushing her teeth and washing her hands are also fun activities - I can't go into the bathroom without her asking to do one of those things while I'm in there! We've been going out to the playground as often as we can despite the cooler weather, and Aimy loves it. As soon as she sees that familiar sight, she gets all excited.

Brushing my teeth is fun

Silly fake smiles

Sisters playing together

I'm sure we've done more things lately but I've forgotten what they are! Still need a few full nights of sleep to be back to my normal self. But I'm not complaining! (Well, not that often, anyway). Oh and don't forget to take a look at the crafting blog - I have posted an entry about the letters I decorated for Alixe's door. Here is the blog post for Aimy's letters, if you want to take a look back and see what I did for hers.

I think she likes her door!