sweet addison

long overdue, but here we go.

addisons 2nd birthday came and went much too quickly. we have had so much fun with her personality, spunk and attempt at humor. think a 2 year old can't be funny??? then you must not have one :)

it feels like she's grown up a faster than avery did at that age. the dr says she's really tall, so maybe that's why. he also said she's talking much more and more clearly than a lot of children her age ~ but as he also said, avery is such a talker, addison was bound to catch on. seriously, avery never stops talking and if you've heard her at nap or bedtime, you know. addison also moved up a class at church and that made me pretty sad. she's pretty much the smallest one in her class and i don't love that. i'm confident, though, that she can hold her own. she's a survivor (cue beyonce). but i don't like that she looks at us when she goes in as if to say "really? you want me to go in here?" this class also does not permit diaper bags, another sign she's no longer a baby :(

need more proof that she's growing up? she's started holding up her clothes and calling them "cute." she regularly asks for my coffee and she knows how to cut her eyes to see if you're watching her.

needless to say, the baby days are gone, but i'm keeping her in footie pj's as long as i can....until she's potty trained anyway. here are a few pictures from her birthday party. we had a great time with all of her/our friends....and missed a few of them as well.

she loved the happy birthday song

and she blew out both the candles, all by herselfher doll was her favorite gift and once she opened that, she didn't really want to open anything else! happy birthday addison!

is this the way i want to return??

so i was tagged by lori to "honestly scrap" about myself - and i'm not really sure what that even means. i'll be honest - i hate the 'tagging' but i feel as if i'm somewhat responsible after the '10 things i'm not afraid to admit' list..even though i didn't tag, i just 'encouraged' you to play along. regardless, i'm not above making a list, and apparently there are rules to this - they are: 1)First list 10 honest things about yourself - and make it interesting, even if you have to dig deep! 2) Pass the award on to 7 bloggers that you feel embody the spirit of the Honest Scrap. i feel like this is 10 things i'm not afraid to admit, but hey, i'm game. i'm sure my list can be expanded.

Stephanie's Scrap (again, not sure about the title)
1) honestly ~ i'm not a big fan of kids, other than my own and a few others that feel like my own
2) honestly ~ i'm not afraid of confrontation
3) honestly ~ i'll steal one from lori ~ when i speak of 'home' i might be referring to my parents house or my actual home with my actual grown up family
4) honestly ~ i'm great at memorizing scripture, not always the best at applying it
5) honestly ~ i think everyone with kids needs to go through a growing kids course
6) honestly ~ i have apparently become a bandwagon fan, says allen. i loathe the bandwagon person. that's okay, at least i don't buy the tshirt at the concert and wear it there.
7) honestly ~ i think addison looks a lot like my baby pictures and no one will admit it but me
8) honestly ~ i like winter and cold when i'm participating in a 'winter' and 'cold' activity, like skiing. but i don't like to be cold just because it's cold
9) honestly ~ i love that allen thinks to get me egg drop soup on wednesday nights all on his own
10) honestly ~ i hate starbucks and think most other people do too - they just like to say they drink it. it's a fad. come on people, BE the trend, don't follow it.

my seven
jennifer, abby, kaitlin, gina, beth, maegan, michelle

8.46 am

It's hard to believe that two years ago today, at 8.46 am, sweet Addison was born. Allen and I sat last night and walked through what we did that night before she was born ~ it was a busy night and Addison's arrival was not expected!!! But she came into this world perfect and we wouldn't have it any other way. So today, we're celebrating Addison. If you've met her, you know she can capture your heart with her sweet smile. She's a snuggler and she loves her big sister. Her first word was "more" and she took her first steps when she was 17 months old. She eats more than most adults but never seems to gain weight. She's our adventurer and she only has one volume - loud. Rules don't apply to her, so she thinks, and she uses her smile and her sweet little arms held out for hugs to get her out of trouble. She loves baby dolls and loves to jump and bounce. She carries KiKi wherever she goes. She's our Addison and she is two years old today!

until then...

it's such an exciting time of year for our church as we head into 21 days of prayer and fasting. i think it's a great way for us, both corporately and individually, to grow in our relationship with the Lord. allen and i are praying and believing for some very specific things and we want to start this year by giving Him our best ~ our complete focus on Him. i know it will be an amazing journey, so i'm asking that you pray for us as we travel through it. while our decision to fast and what we are fasting is a personal decision, i wanted to share why i wouldn't be around much for the next few weeks. the internet...facebook, blogs, shopping...takes up a lot of my time each day. time that could be spent with the Lord, better focused on my children and preparing to be the wife my husband needs me to be. so i'm am going to 'log off' of the internet and refocus my priorities. (disclaimer: i will, however, be checking email because i work from home...and if they don't hear from me for 21 days i will lose my job!:)

i will leave you with the two sweetest girls in my world...and we'll see you soon! love you!

with all this rain, they've been excited to try out their new rain coats

addison, not really sure what to thinkavery, trying to catch it on her tonguering around the rosies with daddy

**if you're interested in fasting you can read more about it here

new years rockin' eve

so, times have definitely changed. i can think back pre-kids, pre-marriage, to all of the new years eves spent out very late. this year we didn't even make it to midnight CST. we did watch the ball drop in new york and we did watch robbie maddison jump to the top of the arc de triomphe replica in las vegas. normally when we watch these stunts you realize that while they are dangerous, they aren't always life threatening. but this had the potential to go very wrong. he jumped 100ft vertical, not at an angle, had to stop himself on a 35 ft roof and then freefall down 5 stories, land on the ramp and coast the rest of the way. if you didn't watch it, it's amazing (crazy)...and here it is for your viewing pleasure. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL0CJgu6Q0g (note - there is a bit of language used at the end...it was on espn too and i bet the guy didn't know he was live, or maybe he did and just didn't care. both are realistic options.)

BUT, before we settled in for ryan seacrest and robbie maddison we had a fun night out with some of our favorite friends. we went bowling. riveting, i know...but it was so fun and the kids loved it. we were there with every other young family that wanted to be back home by 10pm. :)

allen, because everything is a competition

avery's first try - notice the helpsecond try, with guidance but no helpthird times a charmaddison - eating - but with stylei think they were strategizing how to beat elliegirl talkdon't they look so big??addison wanted a turnshe did it!the whole grouphappy new year!

christmas with the drews

did you have a merry christmas?? we sure did! this year was very exciting for avery and everything was very magical. you could see the excitement in her eyes and hear it in her voice every time she saw something new or opened a gift. and sweet addison didn't feel all that great, but she managed to muster some excitement for a few things.

all in all we had an amazing day. i'll let the pictures tell our story...these were a few of our favorite things

me and the girls, christmas eve

addison loved the pack n play for her baby. a lot.

a really lot. she sat in it all day.

and got a little frustrated with the slinky

avery's favorite was/is the trampolineshe practiced and got higher...

and highersweet addison finally got a turnbut it wasn't long before avery joined herafter some coaxing, addison loved the sit n spinyou tell me...who enjoyed the basketball goal the most??

and we ended the night with bedtime stories and breathing treatments!

all i want for christmas...are twins!

if you've been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know that people commonly (and i do mean all the time) ask if my girls are twins. if you're not up on the story, you can read about it here, or perhaps here. If you have a while, stop off here, here or most recently here.

it seems like we get asked that question at least once a week...and i'm always baffled. sometimes what is most funny is the response from onlookers who "get" the obvious.

like last night. i was in the store buying gift bags. avery was chatty and all over the place and sweet addison was quietly sitting in the buggy waiting (yes, and all is right with the world). so it's finally our turn and the checkout lady (girl) talked about how cute the girls were, asked if they were ready for christmas, looked at them closely and said "are they twins." the woman behind me almost choked on her gum. i just smiled and said, "no, they aren't, but you would be surprised how often i'm asked that" and gave the woman behind me a knowing look.

later that night we had christmas dinner with allens mom. she gave the girls each a precious ballerina doll that can dance with you (it attaches to your feet). holding both of them we realized...i finally got the twins that everyone wants me to have!

merry christmas...and may common sense abide in your house this season!