Happy Birthday Annabelle

We had Annabelle's birthday party this weekend and it was a great time! I can't believe our little girl is 2 years old - time really does fly! It was wonderful to have so many of our family and friends here to help us celebrate. We were a little worried, there is something going around daycare and I think Annabelle is coming down with it - but she did well all day yesterday. The party started with all the kids running around and playing and the adults were visiting. Brian grilled hotdog and burgers and I am pretty sure everyone got enough to eat. Afterwards we sang Happy Birthday to Annabelle, when we were done she wanted us to do it again, she didn't have any candles to blow out because it was so windy they wouldn't stay lit but I don't think she even noticed. After cake and ice cream it was time to slip and side heart attack hill. It was really fun to watch. Some of the older kids went down by themselves and had a great time. Some of the younger ones went down as well but Brian would catch them at the end and most of the time they wanted someone to hold their hand - I was surprised at how fast they would go. Brian and Carly were the last two to try the slip and slide and then we decided that it was time to call it quits. Everyone went and put on dry clothes and it was time for presents. By the time we were done Annabelle was starting to run on empty - she was asking to go inside and I don't think I have ever heard her say that. Thank you to everyone who came to help us celebrate. We are very blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives!

The Big Kids Having Fun!

6 month check up

Cole went to the doctor last week for his 6 month check up. Every thing went well. Again I thought her would be bigger than what he was but he is a happy healthy boy so we have nothing to complain about. He weighs 18 pounds 7 ounces - 62 percentile. He is only 26.5 inches long - 49th percentile (I think the nurse didn't measure him correctly but it doesn't really matter). Other than that not much happened. We didn't have many questions for the doctor and he didn't have much to tell us either - which is nice. The appointment ended with 3 shots and a blood draw - he handled it like a champ. Other exciting news - Cole's 3rd and 4th teeth are through. The funny part about it is that it isn't the top front two it is the two next to them so he now has fangs :)

Big Girl Bed

Annabelle's new favorite thing to do is crawl into our bed, get under the covers and say "night night" It is really cute. We have let her watch tv in bed a few times in the evening but she has yet to come close to falling asleep. Brian and I talked about putting her in a toddler bed but we have a hard time taking her out of her crib when she isn't trying to crawl out of it. After talking to a few other people who have had toddlers every one of them have said if they are not crawling out of the crib at this age leave them in. So Annabelle will be staying her crib for a little while longer.

Technology

It is amazing what these little minds can learn at such a young age.

2 kids 1 bath

Now that Cole can sit we decided to try sticking him in the tub with Annabelle. They both loved it! Cole is getting to the point in the baby tub that he splashes so much that the floor is quite wet when he is done so it is about time to move him to the big tub anyway. Annabelle had a blast splashing around and showing Cole how to blow bubbles in the water. Cole enjoyed watching her and really got the hang of splashing. It was nice to have both kids clean and only one bath time. We were also very proud of Annabelle this afternoon. When she was in the tub she stood up and started holding her butt. I asked if she had to poop and she said no and sat back down. A few seconds later she did it again. I asked her again and she said yes. We dried off, the whole time I had to assure her she could get back into the tub, and she went poop on the potty. Then back in the tub she jumped. What a good little girl!

It sure doesn't look like Annabelle is 1 1/2 years older than Cole - he is catching up quick!

Fair Time

Yeay she won!

Daddy won a teddy bear for Cole. He should have a little more fun next year.

Annabelle and Cole went to the fair for the first time today. Annabelle had a great time and Cole didn't seem to mind it. We walked through the animal barn first and Annabelle really enjoyed it. Cole wasn't so sure what to think with the different noises that they were making. We then took a stroll through the midway and bought a few tickets so Annabelle could go on some rides. She didn't seem to care much while we were walking around if she went on rides or not, I don't think she had any idea what they were going to be like. We first let her play a game where you just pick a duck out of the water -she really enjoyed it and wanted to do it again and again. We then went for a ride on the carousel. She loved that as well - she wasn't happy when it stopped but she didn't cry when we took her off. The last ride we took her on was the big slide - she LOVED it. She giggled the whole way down and wanted to do it again and again. I was a little surprised that we were able to leave the fair without any tears from anyone. It was a fun afternoon!

Busy Busy

Our little water baby

Annabelle does such a good job entertaining Cole

I know I have said this before but I don't know where the time goes! By the time Brian and I are done for the night it is 10:30 and all I want to do is go to bed so I haven't been posting much lately. I need to get back into the routine. It has been a hot and dry summer here and we have been spending a lot of time outside after work/daycare. Most of the time Annabelle is just in her suit and the sprinkler is on. She will run through it and then play with bubbles and then back through the sprinkler. Some nights we figure with the soap from the bubbles and the water we shouldn't have to give her a bath. The other day at daycare they had asked us to send swimsuits with because they were going to run through the sprinkler. When I went to feed Cole they told me that Annabelle was the only one who would run through it, half the kids wouldn't have anything to do with it and the other 1/2 cried while Annabelle ran through the water laughing and screaming. I can not believe how fast she is growing. She now talks non-stop and is starting to sing different songs. Cole is growing and changing all the time. He can sit by himself - not sure when that happened - and now most of the time he wants nothing to do with laying on the floor. He also really enjoys grabbing things and 99% of the time they end up in his mouth. It really bothers Annabelle at the supper table when he grabs something that he isn't suppose to have and then when he puts it in his mouth she really isn't happy - Brian and I find it kind of funny. He is also sleeping all night a few nights a week. I am not sure if he is getting close to always sleeping all night or on those days he is just that tired from daycare. I think Cole's favorite past time is watching Annabelle, she can really get him going! She will be running around playing and he will just giggle at her. She is also really good at playing with him, her favorite thing to do is sit on the floor and play catch and Cole loves the attention. Overall things are going well at the Paulson house. The only thing that we could ask for is more time to spend with our precious kids - time is going way to fast!

White Cloud Days in Jamestown. Ian rode in the fire truck with Brian and then they practiced spaying water when they were done.

Poop in the Potty

Annabelle continues to think she wants to be potty trained. At least 2-3 times a night she says "got to pee" Brian and I are getting better at taking the time to actually let her sit on the toilet and try. I would say about 1/2 the time she actually goes. The other night she told me she had to go so off to the bathroom we went. She sat there for maybe 30 seconds and then got the idea stuck in her head that she was going to take a bath. She climbed down and we filled up the tub. After I had her all clean I had to run to the kitchen to grab something for Cole. I was only gone for a minute and when I came back I found her standing in the tub saying, "oh oh, poop potty" Yep she had pooped in the tub and when I came back she had both hands full of poop and was trying to throw it in the toilet. It was probably the most disgusting and funniest thing that I have seen in the past 2 years. There is never a dull moment with our kids!

Happy 4th of July a week late

Last week was a major holiday at the Paulson house. The 4th of July is Brian's favorite holiday and I think he may pass that on to Annabelle. We celebrated on the 3rd in Carrington with Brian's family and had a great time. Annabelle had no fear of the fireworks or the noise. She really enjoyed being able to help light some off. I think she may follow in her dad's footsteps.