The Grays

We have big plans this Winter, hopefully to include some sledding, ice skating on Viele Lake, and skiing, but we’ve only seen one day of snow so far!

Here’s the girls’ class lineup beginning in January, afternoons are reserved for outings with Mommy and playdates with friends:

Monday: Lilly – Preschool in the morning
Robin – Mom/Tot Music and Dance Class
Afterwards Robin plays in childcare while Mom gets in a workout, followed by lunch out together
before picking up L

Tuesday: Lilly – Gymnastics for 3 year olds (Robin & Mom watch)

Wednesday: Lilly – Preschool in the morning
Mom meets with her Spanish group!

Thursday: Lilly – Preschool in the morning
Robin – childcare at rec center while Mom gets in a workout

Friday: Lilly – Preschool in the morning
Robin – Whole Foods trip with Mom followed by Gym Jam

Saturday: Lilly – Advanced Preschool Swim Lessons
Robin – Jelly Monkey Swim Lessons with Daddy

*Starting next month I’m also excited to be joining Intercambio in a volunteer position to teach English to a group of Spanish speakers one evening a week!

At 19 months Robin is funnier and sweeter than ever before. She has become a ‘little mommy’, carrying a baby doll around with her most of the day and wrapping it in blankets, feeding and caring for it. She is interested in using the potty and often removes her clothes and sits on it (with no success). Robin is always copying her big sister and the two are playing together quite well now. She spends much of her time dancing (spinning in a circle) and singing (especially ‘twinkle twinkle’ and songs from Music Together) and recently learned to jump. Robin’s vocabulary has grown significantly this month and she continues to ask for things and discuss things in one or two words. She always wants to be a part of whatever Lilly is doing and says, “Robin, too!” often to communicate that she wants to be a part of things. This past weekend we went to a holiday parade with friends and kids were passing out candy. When Robin didn’t get a piece she ran around yelling “Robin, too!” until someone gave her a piece, lol. She also likes to “help, too” with cleanup, etc, which I appreciate :). She loves playing with water, trying on clothes, and reading books. We adore her.

We spent our 7 year anniversary at home together, enjoying a nice bottle of wine, cake, and Mario Party, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way :). Our ‘big plans’ for an evening out last Friday were changed when the girls caught the stomach flu, but we’ll follow through with those another time. Happy Anniversary to my best friend and partner!

On Sunday we celebrated Christmas with Nana, Boppa, and Aunt Martha! It really felt like Christmas with our family in our new home. The girls had fun opening all of their presents – the chatter monkey from Aunt Martha was a big hit with Lilly and the baby doll from Nana was a favorite for Robin. The moment Robin had the doll in her arms she started rocking her back and forth and singing, so adorable!!! Nana made her xmas casserole for brunch and we were most excited by the portrait Judy made of Robin (and my awesome jacket from Aunt Martha)!

For the complete set of photos, click here.

Thanksgiving Morning

Thanksgiving Dinner

This Thanksgiving was very special because it was our first time celebrating in our new home and Nana, Boppa, and Aunt Martha were in town to celebrate with us. Unfortunately I woke up at 1am Thursday with the stomach flu so we were unable to follow through with our plans (big family dinner at our house) but I’m glad that Bill and the girls were still able to celebrate with dinner at Nana and Boppa’s. At 10pm that evening Bill and I were both half asleep after a long day when both girls woke up with the stomach flu within one hour of each other. This was actually the first time that we’ve had two sick girls at the same time, but they were troopers and it was a good excuse to stay home (Friday) and decorate the house for Christmas!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

For the complete set of photos, click here.

We FINALLY hiked to the highest point of the Flatirons! Bill took an extra day off of work over Thanksgiving so that we could hike Bear Peak with his dad. We could not have asked for a more beautiful day to complete this 6 hour hike – it was 62 degrees with clear skies and at the top you could see along the continental divide and all the way to Wyoming. The start of the trail is less than 100 yards from Bill and Judy’s condo and it is a strenuous hike up the Fern Canyon Trail (3,000 feet elevation gain). We came down the trail off the back which is more of a gradual descent. It just opened last week due to fire damage and was pretty eerie to see the charred rocks and trees along the path. In true Boulder fashion we were passed by several trail runners who were running to the top of the peak and then on to various other summits in the area, lol.

The hike was a highlight of our Fall and we look forward to doing it again SOON!

For the complete set of photos, click here.

I guess all of the music classes have paid off, because lately Lilly is making up songs and singing all of the time!  Click here to watch a video of her singing along to one of her favorites in the (parked) car today, with a little help from her sister.

We had a blast celebrating Halloween this year. Last Friday we went to Bill’s office for their annual kids Halloween party and the girls had fun collecting candy from his co-workers, seeing all the decorations, and eating cookies and cupcakes in the conference rooms.

Lilly’s preschool had their annual Halloween party on Wednesday and my mom went with her. It is their biggest event of the year and Lilly is still talking about it. There were ghost stories and different stations for the kids to go to and earn prizes. They went fishing for candy, had fun on an obstacle course, made mummy jars, ate lots of homemade goodies, and of course had a costume parade.

We went over to Kirsten and Scott’s house in the afternoon to celebrate Annabell’s 1st birthday and to go trick or treating. This is the first year that Lilly has gone trick or treating with a group of kids and she had SO much fun!! Robin caught on right away and followed right behind the ‘big kids’, putting a piece of candy in her bucket at each stop. It certainly brought back memories of trick or treating when we were kids. We had Pumpkin Stout and Pumpkin Cupcakes from the shops on the corner with my mom once the kids were asleep. Can’t wait for next year! 🙂

For the complete set of photos, click here.

Celebrating Grandpa’s 67th Birthday!

Dinner at Nana and Boppa’s

We had a nice visit with the grandparents these past few weeks!!

Spending nights with Nana while Bill was out of town, spending time with Jamie and Gail, celebrating Grandpa’s 67th birthday, family dinner at Nana and Boppa’s condo, spending Halloween and shopping with Grandma were just a few of the highlights.

For the complete set of photos, click here and here.

I can’t believe our baby is a year and a half already! Happy half-birthday, Ro! xo

This month brings remarkable firsts, such as giant laughter with every high-five (she even high-fives herself in the mirror), doing ‘trust falls’ with mommy and daddy and literally falling into our arms, and saying “I love you” (ah-loo-loo).  Her favorite activity this month is taking her clothes off (lol) and running around the house making me to chase her to change her diaper.  She also loves dressing herself and putting on socks.  Robin is interacting with Lilly on a new level and every night she runs into Lilly’s room to say “night night, Lilly” (nigh-nigh Lih-yee) and give her a hug and kiss.  Judging from her laughter, shrieks, and jumps, her favorite part of the day is when Daddy walks in the door at night. Warms my heart, just like everything else she does.

Weight: 26 pounds (75th percentile)
Length: 33.25 inches (90th percentile)
Head: 18.5 inches (50th percentile)