Big Girl Bed

I'm a little behind on this, but Annie started sleeping in a big girl bed! When I went to put her to bed one night, she threw a huge fit. She was yelling "Big girl bed!" over and over. I was too tired to argue, so I stuck her in bed, confirmed she wanted to stay there and left. Ten minutes later she was asleep, and I didn't hear from her again until 8:00 a.m. the next morning. We haven't looked back since (except at naptime, which is a struggle no matter we try to get her to sleep).


And, sadly for Annie, she seems to have inherited my side's double chin. When she's a little older, I'll have to teach her the art of positioning her head just so, so it doesn't show up in pictures. But until then, she's a toddler and has no vanity. So, that's her on her first day in her big girl bed.

Cute Hat

Kate's hat in that last post has gotten quite the response--both on the computer and in real life. I can't take her anywhere in it without someone stopping me to comment on its cuteness and ask where I got it. Here's a shot of the entire hat for the curious.


However, it was a gift, so I have no idea where it came from. Somewhere in the greater Cincinnati area, I'm guessing. My aunt Stephanie is particularly gifted (no pun intended) in the art of gift giving. I aspire to be more like her in that department. She always finds the cutest or the most thoughtful or the most appropriate things to give. She remembers if you admire something or need something or what her kids liked at that age, and she buys accordingly. She sent Kate that adorable hat and some very cute little socks when she was born. So thanks Steph for making Kate such a cute and popular little girl :)

How cute is this baby?!

No offense to anyone else with a baby, but Kate might be the cutest baby of all time. :)

Happy Birthday Annie!

One day old.

Two years old

Annie is two years old today. Matt and I cannot believe our little girl is already two! She is talking in full sentences, remembers (and repeats) everything and has started to go potty like a big girl here and there. A few days before her birthday, she even decided that she was done with her crib and insisted on sleeping in a big girl bed. So, our little Annie is sound asleep each night in a bed the same size as the one her parents share.
Gigi and Grandpa Jeff came to visit for Annie's birthday. On Saturday night, we went out to dinner where Annie got a special dessert.
Today, Annie helped us look for a new house and then got to come to Meijer without Kate...which meant she finally got to ride in the special Nickelodeon cart with the t.v. She has been begging me to ride in one and today was her chance. She loved it! She was so enthralled with the t.v. she wold not even look at me for a picture.
We had ice cream and cake, and Annie spent much of the day singing Happy Birthday to herself.

Annie and Grandpa Jeff in their Dora party hats.

Kate was thrilled to celebrate her sister's birthday.

SCORE! Annie yelled this every time she made a basket on her new hoop.

Dear Kate,

Your dad and I have learned a lot in these past few months. I can do more than I ever thought possible with only one free hand. And, thanks to you, the development of my freakish mom strength is progressing rapidly. I can carry your car seat, Annie and a number of bags from the store all at once and in a snow storm. We also discovered one of the greatest inventions known to man: the baby sling. If you're ever wondering what the first few months of your life looked like, here they are:

I can do anything with you in this sling. I wrapped Christmas presents for our entire family, cleaned our house, cooked dinner, visited museums and playdates with Annie...pretty much you name it, I've done it with you in that sling. It's fabulous except for the aching back :)
We've also learned that babies really can cry for hours on end. Long after you're sure they must be exhausted because you certainly are. And, really, I've found it quite helpful. All the pacing and the patting and the swaying and the shushing have done wonders in helping me lose the baby weight. :) So, Kate, thanks for the lessons. We love you, and we hope you're the only baby who needed to teach us these things...

Bucket Head

As was documented on this blog, the one specific thing Annie asked for when she saw Santa Claus was a bucket. She must have been a good girl because on Christmas morning she unwrapped her very own, bright blue bucket.
As we suspected, Annie uses this bucket only to put on her head, run around and yell "Look, Mommy, look! I'm a bucket head!" She also makes Matt and I wear it on our heads and calls us bucket heads. It really is hours of fun.

She's pretty advanced

"Yo Mom, make me a sammich"

Snow Fun

The whole Ralls family ventured out into the snow today. It snowed like crazy all day. It was even the pretty kind of a steady snow fall that's perfect to play in. So we bundled up and headed out.
Annie was really excited at first, though she did not want to wear her mittens. And she had a little trouble walking due to the thick clothing/high snow combination.

We tried to get her to make a snow angel. She did not see the fun in that at all.

Kate just hung out. She seemed a little indifferent to the snow excitement.

Then, Annie decided that riding her bike through the snow would be fun. Our neighbor Madison joined us around then, too.

Shortly thereafter, Annie (who had long ago abandoned her mittens) called it quits, and everyone came inside. Here's a bonus pic of the girls at the end of their long, fun filled Saturday with their dad.

An important message from Annie and Kate

After much consideration and discussion between them, Annie and Kate have decided that come this fall, they will be supporting the Michigan Wolverines. Why, do you ask, would two Ohio-loving girls such as them make this decision?

Answer: It's where their dad will be working for at least the next six years!!

We found out today that Matt is officially a categorical resident at the University of Michigan, meaning no more worries. He'll finish his surgical residency here in Ann Arbor, which is quite a feat. We are so excited, and the girls and I are so proud of Matt!!

Jealousy

Having a new baby in the house can be hard for a toddler. We weren't sure how Annie would react to Kate. With all the attention of visitors to the new baby, Mommy always taking care of the baby, etc., we thought maybe she'd have a rough time. Turns out she didn't care all that much, which was quite lucky for me and Matt.
However, Annie is having some serious jealousy issues over Kate's Band-Aids from her 2-month shots. Yes, that's right--Band-Aids. Every time I change Kate's diaper and Annie sees that cartoon Band-Aids, she freaks out. Stickers! She wants a sticker, too, she says. I have tried giving her her own stickers. No dice. I have also tried to explain many times that they are Band-Aids because Kate had to have shots, and we had to cover her boo-boos.

From this, Annie has decided:
1. Kate got shot.
2. Kate is allowed to have stickers, and she is not.

Many tears have been shed over the unfairness of it all.

Smiles!

As previously mentioned, Kate has started smiling. It is fantastic. This morning, when I went to get her out of her crib, she gave me the biggest smile as soon as she saw me. And she even smiled for a few pictures. Makes all the not sleeping and the crying and the pacing much easier to bear :) And look at those dimples!

Not a smile, but really cute just the same:

Two months old!

Kate is two months old today! The weeks have flown by...or I'm just so tired I can't remember...Either way, Kate is doing great. Her crying bouts are improving slowly. She's happier than she was even four weeks ago. And she started smiling!! Real smiles directed at people she recognizes :) She also coos a little bit when she's really happy. Such a sweet sound.
Kate also moved out of our room and into her very own room, complete with a humidifier and a sound machine and anything else we could think of to stop the crying and start the sleeping. She's still won't sleep more than four or five hours at a time. Other than that, her interests are still pretty much sleep, eat, poop. She loves her swing, and she loves to watch her big sister run around.

I tried to catch her smiling today, but she was eyeing the camera suspiciously. I think Annie's gotten to her...

Bumbo

By far, Matt's favorite baby piece is the Bumbo. This lovely invention allows the little ones to sit long before their own physical strength alone could support them. Matt sat Annie in it long before she was ready for it, but she rose to the challenge. In keeping with family tradition, Kate did the same. Matt busted the Bumbo out yesterday and Kate seemed to fit right in. I even caught her smiling!

Never one to be left out, Annie just had to join in the fun.

We got a new pet...

and then we ate him.

For the past five years (except last year when we took a break to go to a party at Ed and Laura's), Matt and I have enjoyed a delicious New Year's Eve meal of lobster and filet. This year, we got really crazy and broiled the filets. Matt did a fantastic job, and they turned out perfectly. Then, we like to buy a live lobster, or Pinchy as Matt calls him (Thank you, Homer Simpson). We let him hang out in a box in the garage for awhile, then we cruelly cook and eat him. I feel sort of bad about it every year, but it is delicious and actually a lot of fun.

It's a good way to celebrate the end of a year and the beginning of a new one. As a recap, here are a few Ralls family highlights of 2008:

* Kate was born! (by far, the biggest moment of the year)
*Matt graduated from medical school (also thrilling)
*We moved to Michigan
*Annie turned one.
*Annie got her first haircut (sounds boring, but trust me, it was a big day at our house)
*Kerri finally got her Cuisinart coffee maker. :)
*Our dog Sydney made it through another year.

Matt said this list is lame, but I can't think of any more right now. And, I think the baby and the graduation count for at least a few. Anyway, here's to another great year!