Friday, July 29, 2016

Big Canoe 2016

Since it's nearly August, and we're heading to the beach with the Hepper side of the family tomorrow, it's probably a good time to (finally!) put up pictures from this year's trip to Big Canoe.
We spent the first week of July with Marmee and Grampy, Aunt Allison, Kevin, Landon, Sophia, and Ryleigh AND Uncle Michael and Aunt Yoo Jin! It was a packed house, and we had a blast.
On the road, baby dolls in tow!
The first thing we did at Big Canoe was celebrate Landon's 10th birthday!
Then it was time to get dressed up for Uncle Michael and Aunt Yoo Jin's convalidation.
We clean up pretty good!
The flower girls: Caroline, Margaret, Sophia, Ryleigh and Julia 
Julia did a great job walking carefully down the aisle.
Lookin' good, Grampy and Marmee!
The Groom and his Bride.
Uncle Michael, Aunt Yoo Jin and all their nieces and nephews (except Landon).
Stink face.
My gorgeous girls.
Marmee and her grandchildren
The ladies of the DeNiro family
Happy couple
We took the girls shopping at the outlet mall. Claire's, the Disney Store, and Bath and Body Works were "must shops!" 
Margaret blossomed as a swimmer while we were at Big Canoe! It was so awesome to see her progress so much! 
Hard to believe I used to go down this slide 30 years ago.
Rock slide adventurers
Sand castle time! 
Teamwork!
Grampy teaching "donut diving."
We love Grampy! 
Ready for 4th of July fireworks at the ball field!
Sparkler fun

 I promise Margaret was having a good time.

 Caroline enjoying the water slides on the ball field.
 Cotton candy before lunch time is a real treat!
 All the "big" cousins: Sophia, Caroline, Ryleigh, and Landon

 Cousins and friends

 Tackling the field in tandem.

 Margaret being goofy with Sophia
Uncle Michael sporting the jacket Grampy wore to his wedding...over 40 years ago!

Daddy and his mini-me, Julia.

Caroline, Sophia, and Ryleigh, celebrating the 4th!

Cannonball! 
Julia did this pool jump about 1 million times over the course of the week.
Cousin jump fun!
Margaret
Julia



Sunday, July 10, 2016

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

June wouldn't be complete with what feels like a million birthdays! Once we get through the girls' birthdays, it's time to celebrate Daddy (and Uncle Tate!) This year, their birthday happened to fall on Father's Day. We celebrated the night before with dinner out with friends, and then the men played golf the following day. We finished up the 2-for-1 holiday with a backyard BBQ.
36 looks good on Daddy!
Fuzzy picture...which matched our collective state at that point in the evening ;-) 
Birthday boys
Here's to another great year!

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Julia and Margaret at 5 years old

The twins are so excited to be five! For some reason, it was an especially big milestone to both of them, but especially to Julia. She waited with great anticipation for the arrival of her birthday, and has since started many a sentence with, "Now that I am five..."
Five year old check ups are in the books! Both girls did great, but both need additional vision check ups. Not really surprising since their mother is pretty near-sighted!
Julia hitting the scales!
Margaret measuring up!
Blood pressure: check!
Vision: check!
Awaiting Dr. Nelson (and also 4 shots apiece...ouch!)
Both girls continue to make us proud with how much they grown and developed. Here is a little bit about each twin.

Julia:
Height: 43.5 inches (75th percentile)
Weight: 49 pounds (90th percentile)

Julia's temperament continued to mellow over the last year, and she now shows a lot more patience and control over her emotions than before. Having said that, she continues to be a very passionate child who feels things very deeply, whether good or bad. She gets very disappointed when she feels she has "messed up." On the flip side, she is compassionate and thoughtful of others feelings.
Julia is enamored with animals of any kind, and boasts a pet collection which includes a hermit crab, a hamster, and an ant farm. Julia enjoyed every moment of watching caterpillars transform to butterflies this spring...except the part about letting them go. She says she'd like to be a "vetinarier" (veterinarian) when she grows up, and we think it would make an excellent profession for her.
Julia is a very active child who enjoys swimming more than any other activity. She would spend every minute of every day in the pool if we let her. Julia also enjoys drawing, "reading," and playing imaginary/role play games with her sisters. Julia looks up to Caroline very much, and is always excited when Caroline wants to play with her.

Margaret:
Height:  41 5/8 inches (25th-50th percentile)
Weight: 39 pounds (25th-50th percentile)

Margaret continues to be sweet but sassy. She is a pint-sized firecracker who can show amazing empathy one minute but lash out in anger in the next. She is sensitive and does not like to be "wrong" in any situation. Margaret is especially attached to her lovies and blankies and arrives downstairs every morning with an enormous mass of these comfort items piled up in her arms. Margaret is a child of routine who likes to know the schedule for the day ahead of time (much like her Mommy!)
Margaret enjoys coloring, building with Legos, imaginary/role play with her sisters, and playing with Play-Doh. Margaret still enjoys playing "kitty-cat" at a moment's notice. She can often be seen posing as a cat with her "paws" help up in front of her chest and a "meow" escaping from her mouth.
Margaret was a pretty good soccer player on her team, the Cheetahs, this past spring. We are hoping her interest in the sport will grow in the upcoming season. She does not enjoy swimming as much as Julia but is getting better with lessons.

Caroline at 7 Years Old

Caroline at 7 years old 

Caroline continues to grow into an amazing young girl. She is sensitive, silly, decisive, imaginative, and kind. Over the course of the last year, we have watched her mature and grow in so many ways. She is an excellent mathematician, a wonderful artist, and a strong swimmer. She is more confident at school, despite being one of the younger students in her grade. We are so thankful that despite becoming more mature, she is still Mommy and Daddy's girl at heart. I enjoy spending time with Caroline more and more every day. We have great fun together, and I love the "Mommy and Big Sister" relationship we share.
Caroline continues to enjoy art, playing outside, swimming, and imaginary/role play with her sisters. She especially likes playing dolls with the twins, so long as she is in charge. She continues to be an early riser, and often shows up at our bedside by 6:30am, fully dressed, with her room clean and ready to tackle the day!

Height: 47 3/4 inches (50th-75th percentile)
Weight: 52 pounds (50th percentile)

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Julia and Margaret's 5th Birthday!

Julia and Margaret's 5th birthday was a (very) much anticipated event! The twins were so excited about turning five (Julia in particular!). They requested a pool party at ACAC, and we were happy to oblige. Their best buddy, Amory, was unable to attend the party, so we held a mini party at the CCV pool for the three girls the day before the big birthday party. Both parties were a great success!
The twins chose to start their birthday on a delicious note: at Einstein's Bagels!
One pool themed cake, made to order!
The 5th birthday called for a lot of Lego sets. The twins were jazzed!
Amory, Julia, and Margaret at their mini birthday pool party. 
Sweet buddies. 
Cake time! 
Margaret, 5 years old.
Julia, 5 years old
Ready for their pool party at ACAC!
Of course, Caroline had a blast.
She loved the water slides at ACAC.
Julia was a HUGE fan of the slides, too! 
Happy birthday, girls!
Time to bow out the candles. 
The birthday party crew. 
Splash buckets were also a hit with Julia. 
Kyleigh, Drew, and Margaret