Time Flies

I know I promised pictures of Leah's birthday, but I feel like I'm never going to get caught up if I dawdle that far back. She has started ballet lessons, so I'll include some shots of her in her new ballet dress. Right now, the most exciting thing for me about her ballet career is that it has encouraged her to let me put her hair up sometimes!

Molly & Jesse are doing great. They had their 2 month check up last week. Jesse is up to 23.25 inches and 13lbs, 1oz. Molly came in at 22.25 inches and 11lbs, 4oz. They are both in the 50th percentile for height. Jesse is around the 75th for weight, while Molly is also in the 50th for that category. They are starting to be much more alert, and spend more time awake these days. I also think we are close to being on a loose schedule, with the most exciting part of that being a chunk of sleep from 11ish-6ish most nights.

We all went to the lake with Bubbe & Honey over the weekend. It was a fun weekend for everyone, and Leah even swam in the lake for the first time!

8 Weeks!

As one might imagine, the past 8 weeks have been a blur! Molly & Jesse are growing quickly, and starting to have a little more pattern to their days. Most nights, we only have 1 "middle of the night" feeding, and Jesse has even slept all the way through the night a few times. Hopefully, just a few more weeks, and we'll be more consistent with sleep. Below are a few pics from the recent weekend. Cousins Max and Charlie came for dinner on Saturday night, and Max even helped Molly get in a meal! We are so lucky to have such generous friends and family who have helped us out and given us a break from the kitchen. Leah also had her 3rd birthday on July 21st! I'll make a separate post soon with some photos from that celebration.

Meet Molly & Jesse

I'm a little late in getting this updated - like 2 weeks late? Molly & Jesse arrived on 6/27/10. They were both born at 11:54am. Molly weighed 5lbs, 15 oz and Jesse weighed 6lbs, 12.5 oz. I'll write more soon, but in the mean time here are some new pictures generously taken by Liz Yeakle & Scott Dinerman this morning. Big sister Leah is adjusting pretty well, and all 3 are keeping us busy. FYI - Jesse is the one with the darker, spikier hair. I will post more writing later!

Leah & Sam Pick Out Pumpkins

We had a chance to run out to Burt's Farm again this year. To make it even more fun, we were able to go with the Galbraiths. Leah & Samuel had a ton of fun exploring all of the different kinds of pumpkins. We also went on a hayride. It was a little bumpy, but a lot of fun. We even saw a black bear in the woods along our way. I must give credit to Leah, because I think most of us wouldn't have noticed that bear. She said "What's that Mama?" I turned around, and realized that it was a real, live bear. He was staring up into a tree. My guess is that he had his eye on something tasty to eat up there. We have tons of pictures from both our apple & pumpkin picking adventures. I'll get a few of those up soon!

Fall Has Arrived!

Beautiful Fall weather is finally here in GA! We took Leah up to the North Georgia Mountains to go apple picking yesterday. It was a gorgeous day, and Leah had fun sampling all of the varieties that we picked.

You Are My Sunshine

So, Mommy got a new video camera!! It is so super-simple to use. I think you can expect to see more video up here in the future. The clip above was just a quick shot, while I was getting acclimated to the new camera. I'm giddy! Leah had a busy visit with her V.V. over Labor Day weekend. She took V.V. to the zoo, the farmers market, and the park. It was a fun weekend, and Leah & V.V. got in a good bit of time together. Leah has gotten really into wearing her tutus (you read that right, she has 2). Hopefully we can document a recital soon.

One quick story. A little sad AND a lot funny. Leah's Uncle Eric passed away 2 years ago. She was a tiny little thing when we lost him, and she won't ever get to know what a funny guy he was. Anyone who spent much time with my big brother knows that he was a gassy guy, and loved a good fart joke too. Leah was having a gassy morning the other day, and I'm certain Uncle Eric was somewhere laughing with us over this one. Picture the scene: Leah is sitting in her high chair. Mommy is moving back and forth between the kitchen and the dining room...

Leah: Mommy, you stink.
Mommy: I don't stink. Are you stinky?
Leah: Nooooo (giggle, giggle, giggle)
[Leah emits a loud gas bubble]
Leah: What was that?!?!? What's that sound?

I could absolutely hear my brother trying to play off his wind as something else, blaming it on someone else, and laughing hysterically when someone encountered the stink. It gave me hope, that even though Leah won't personally experience her Uncle Eric, she might still know him.

Here Goes

So, inspired by my friend Holly, I'm going to try posting more often. Even if I don't have photos to post, I should have plenty of stories. Leah is sooooo super funny right now. Here is a collection of her latest antics:

The set-up: Leah is playing with a battery-powered lantern. Mommy say's "no" about 3 times.
- Mommy: "Leah, what did Mommy say?"
- Leah: "No."
- Mommy: "What does it mean when Mommy says 'no'?"
- Leah: "I not scared of Mommy!"

The set-up: Leah & Daddy are driving in the car on the way to Gymboree class. For those of you not from Atlanta, Goldberg's is our local chain of Jewish delis. Apparently we eat there often...
- Leah: "Where's Momma?"
- Daddy: "Mommy had some things to do this morning, but we are going to meet her for lunch after we go see Gymbo."
- Leah: "Oh good! I love Goldberg's."

The set-up: Leah & Mommy are walking into the doctor's office holding hands. Out on the walkway to the building Mommy heard:
- Leah: Momma called the doctor and the doctor said 'No more Leahs jumping on the bed!'."

The set-up: Driving in the car one afternoon. A voice comes from the back seat of the car...
- Leah: Ladies and gentlemen, it's......my Momma!!"

I don't know where the "Momma" is coming from. I guess she must have heard it somewhere, because I've always referred to myself as "Mommy". I guess the South is rubbing off on my girl! We should have some more pictures after this weekend, since we have a busy family weekend ahead. I think we'll be schlepping the camera a lot!

Leah is 2!

OK, so I have been taking a little blog-vacation for the past 3 months or so....Does anyone still read this thing? Just in case, here is what we have been up to: Leah has put in a lot of pool time. She went to the Lake with her friends Micah & Jonah. She went to the Lake with Bubbe, Honey, & her cousins Max & Charlie. She has had TONS of time with her grandparents, V.V. and Grumpa. I have far too many photos to try to get them all up here. If I can get myself organized, I'll put together a slide show of May/June/July.

The biggest happening for Leah in the past days has been her 2nd birthday!! Leah had a pretty perfect 2nd birthday, if you ask me. She got to play at Gymboree with some of her favorite people. Leah loves ladybugs lately, so there were plenty of them on hand to celebrate at her party, and at home. On the actual birthday, Leah got to swim, and had all 4 of her grandparents to herself. She was thrilled to be the center of attention, and serenaded us after a beautiful picnic dinner. In addition to spending time with so many special people, the child made out like a bandit! She has a fantastic new swing set in the back yard, and a shiny lavender bicycle to keep her entertained...along with many other special gifts. The most rewarding part of this birthday for me, was hearing Leah say some of her "thank yous" unprompted! She is such a big girl!!

Here is just one of a zillion photos of Leah's first exploration of the swing set:


Here are a few shots from Leah's Gymboree birthday party. She had a blast playing with many of her friends and cousins.

May Showers

Welcome to May! The month has started a little on the soggy side, but we really need the rain. It is great for Leah's vegetable garden! Leah has been enjoying a visit from her Auntie Shannon this week. Leah is an excellent tour guide, and has shown Shannon some of the highlights. We managed to beat the rain today, and make an expedition to the berry patch. Leah LOVED picking strawberries, though she probably ate more than she put in the bucket. Her face (and shirt) were totally pink by the time we left the patch. Leah also had a good time, directing Mommy & Shannon to "Follow me." down the rows of berries. Once we picked our fill, Leah got a chance to visit some farm animals. She saw cows, goats, sheep, rabbits, ducklings, and a peacock! It was a very fun outing, and I think we'll have to try blueberry picking this summer!

Happy April

Leah started April by getting a special treat. She got to spend a beautiful Spring morning in the park with Sam & Anna. If you read Leah's blog often, you know that these 3 munchkins were friends before they were born - the mommies all worked together at United Way. We had regular lunches (with Neese too) throughout our pregnancies. Leah, Sam, & Anna were all born within 3 weeks of each other. We're lucky to see Samuel very often, and we see Anna sometimes too. It has been a real feat to get us all together at the same time over the past 20+ months. Next time we're hoping that Neese & Mya can make it too!



The new fence is up! We have bisected the yard, so that Leah has a place to play without having to dodge dog-poo! The humans in the family are pretty excited, but you can see that the dogs are not so convinced. Jack even voiced his opposition, and he rarely barks!




Leah finally got her sand & water table set up last weekend. It was much more difficult to put together than we expected it to be. However, I think her Daddy felt better about it once he saw Leah's reaction. So far, her favorite parts are the boats and the umbrella. This weekend, we hope to assemble her play house. That should prove to be another exciting adventure too!

Out Like A Lamb

The Spring weather has been fluctuating in and out over the past month. We have had some beautiful, warm days AND some cold, wet ones too. Here you can see Leah enjoying one of the sunnier ones. She got the chance to sit outside and sip a little milk while Mommy had coffee with Holly. That same day, Leah got to meet baby Charlotte, who snoozed through the entire coffee date. When we were saying out goodbyes, Leah refused to hug Holly or Mommy. However, she strongly wanted to hug on Charlotte. Since Charlotte is too little to be hugged by an enthusiastic toddler, Leah had to settle for simply kissing Charlotte's toes.


Leah is such a lucky girl to have her grandparents around. Bubbe & Honey are so much fun, and Leah can now identify their exit on 285. When you near or pass Riverside Drive, there will be exclamations of "Bubbe house!" from the back seat. V.V. came for a nice visit this month. She got Leah to herself for 2 days while Mommy was in meetings. During that time, Leah introduced V.V. to Gymbo the Clown at Gymboree. Unfortunately, Grumpa was not able to make the trip because of a stomach bug. Leah missed him terribly, and talked about him a lot while V.V. was here.

In Like A Lion

We had a rare Southern snow day today, on the first day of March. The snow started late in the morning, and didn't really accumulate enough to play in before Leah took her nap. She LOVED looking out the window, and watching the snowflakes fall. She and Buffett spent quite a while watching out the front windows. After nap time, we all go bundled, and headed out to play in the snow. Well, the snow was on the wet-side, and Leah was miserable. She wouldn't let me put her down, and started screaming almost immediately. Needless to say, we lasted less than 5 minutes out in the elements.






Leah's favorite part of the snow day was, undoubtedly, the hot chocolate! A girl after my own heart, she chanted "cocoa, cocoa" long after it was gone. Check out the chocolate face!

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First Trip to the Zoo

Leah got a chance to take advantage of some Spring-preview weather over the weekend, and made her first visit to Zoo Atlanta. We were able to catch up with the Parness Family, and thank Micah for being our own personal tour guide! Leah loved all of the animals, and waved at most of them. She often said "Hello" to the different animals, including an enthusiastic "Hello big lizard" for the komodo dragon. Leah was very excited to see lemurs, who remind her of one of her tv friends, Zaboomafoo. The pandas were very interesting, and she was lucky enough to get face-to-face with one of them!




Leah is quite fond of elephants these days. They weren't outside yet when we started our tour, but we got pretty close to one of the big guys just as we were leaving the zoo. He was snacking on crunchy green bamboo. Leah heard him crunch, and saw the green stuff, and proclaimed "Broccoli!". I corrected her, and told her that the elephant was eating bamboo. Later in the afternoon, we went to play group and I told the elephant/broccoli story a few times. The last time I told it, I said "....and she said 'broccoli'." Leah immediately corrected ME with "Bamboo!". Nothing gets past our girl!



In addition to our fun at the zoo, Leah had a busy weekend. She had breakfast at Goldberg's with Daddy Erwin & Judy, hit the park at Brook Run, partied with Gymbo at Micah's 2nd birthday, AND went to playgroup at Judah's house. Up this week, we are expecting a little visit from V.V.!!

Daddy's Birthday Weekend

We celebrated Alex's birthday this past weekend by taking a weekend getaway. V.V. and Grumpa met us at the Lake. We had such a fun visit, and explored a bit of Middle Georgia while we were at it. On Saturday, we took a road trip to explore the towns of Athens and Madison. In Athens, Leah got to romp on the green with V.V., and see parts of the University of Georgia campus. She was so tired after playing and lunch, that she took a nap in the car on the way from Athens to Madison. She didn't have her sleepytime friends with her, so she gabbed onto Grumpa's finger, and fell asleep holding on to him!




Sunday, we stayed closer to home. We went to feed the ducks, and they finally came to eat! Leah had been 2 or 3 times before, and the ducks weren't ever hungry. We also saw some fish. They stole the bread that the ducks missed.



After visiting the ducks, we hit the playground. Leah had the place to herself, and had a ball running around and climbing all the way to the top. We spent Sunday afternoon around the house, enjoying the sunshine on the deck and dock. Leah exercised her imagination by feeding Jack "apples" (dead leaves), and "noodles" (pine needles). Amazingly, Jack found that game to be a lot of fun. He didn't actually eat any of Leah's goodies, but he would nibble on them and wag his little nub. Of course, no trip to the Lake would be complete without a little time on the dock. Buffett could spend hours out there sniffing the breeze.




We finished the birthday celebration with buffalo wings and V.V.'s famous birthday cake while we watched the Super Bowl. Leah's next few weeks are busy with every day happenings. Lucky girl, her V.V. will be back in just a few days, and Valentine's is around the corner!

Odds and, errr....ends

Leah has had a quiet few weeks. She has been settling in to her new activities at Gymboree and music class. She seems to enjoy both, and is especially getting into the tumbling at Gymboree. She has had a little cold - more snot than anything else - so we've been pretty close to home for the last few days. Here is a shot of Leah playing "night-night" with Buffett. Except, perhaps Buffett wasn't playing?



Leah's big excitement this week is the introduction of her potty. We don't think she is quite ready to start potty training, but she has taken an interest lately. Not only did Leah get a new potty today, but that also meant granting her regular access to the downstairs bathroom. First, she was just giddy that she could explore the new room that had previously been off-limits. She splashed in the dog bowl, and pulled a little toilet paper off of the roll. Then, she sat on the potty (fully clothed of course). Daddy cheered for her, and she got a big kick out of that. Leah wandered out of the bathroom for a few minutes, and then she went back in. I followed her in, she sat down, and I cheered. She then looked around from her new vantage point, and grabbed a magazine off of the cart next to her. Hey - what do grown ups do when they sit on the potty? They read a magazine! Her Daddy came to see what I was laughing about, at which point, Leah looked around at her potty and asked "Buckle?". Everything else she sits on or in - stroller, highchair, toy car, carseat, etc. has a buckle. So, it only made sense to her that she should also get buckled into this new seat. After she gave up looking for the buckle, Leah walked over to the big potty and flushed it. She then spent another 15 minutes tearing up the bathroom, until her Daddy couldn't stand it anymore and shut the door. I have a feeling that our water and toilet paper expenses might be on the increase for a bit here..

Fist Hair Cut

Leah had her first haircut this afternoon. I have been mulling it over for the past 2-3 months. Of course, we want to keep growing her hair. She is pretty feminine, but I can't wait until she has enough hair for pigtails...or braids..... Leah was working on quite the mullet, and it finally made me crazy enough to take her for a little trim. She did MUCH better than we expected her to. There were no major theatrics, and only a small fit of silliness. I must say that I was impressed with the kiddie-salon we went to, and it was worth a wait to have this experience in a low-stress environment!

Before: Fly-aways in the eyes. Major mullet in the back.


Showing off her comb-skills on Elmo. Elmo was a good distraction. Adding the comb to Elmo was brilliance!


Have to hold still for the front...


After! What a superstar - no tears, minimal fussing, and a little head-shaking. The difference is subtle, but we were able to get rid of the whispies in her eyes and minimize the mullet!