Easter picture.....

Grace and Maddie's easter picture....this was the best we could get! I'm pretty sure Madelyn got a handful of Grace's hair....ekk. Grace was so good and smiled the whole time!!

Funny Picture....

Grace had just poked Madelyn in the eye and she was crying because we told her to be careful....my mom just happened to have my camera....oh, the joys of parenthood :)

Grace's B-day Party...Part Two...

Family B-day party for Gracie.
Maddie wanted to give Aunt Sara and Uncle Tony's puppy some kisses. She wouldn't take her eyes off of the dog all day!
Grace and and Aunt/God-Mother, Sara
Grace with Uncle Tony and Uncle Jared.
Making a Wish!
Sweet shoes from Uncle Jared.
Opening some presents, Thank you everyone for all the wonderful gifts!!!

Grace's B-day Party...part one.

Goin for a ride....
I had honestly planned to make a cake for this party, but i got too busy and ended up just buying one. I must say- Hy-Vee cakes are MUCH better tasting than anything i could have made.
I guess i could have taken one of my kids while my husband played games.....instead, i took pictures of him playing ski ball, while holding our 5 month old!
Grace and some of her buddies, Avery Dechant, and Carsynn Lang.

The Ireland family....not a great picture of Madelyn...she was tired and crabby.

Spring Fever!

A little taste of spring....outside for the first time in her car that Santa brought. (thank you Wal-Mart, for the great after thanksgiving sale....so that "Santa" could justify getting this gift for you!)
my fingers must always be involved when eating....i have a feeling she'll be a messy child!

Ready for story time in our new lazy boy recliner! I love this chair! We decided that it was time to upgrade to a nicer chair...The glider is just too small, with this chair, Grace, Maddie and I can all rock and read books together! We are really into the Berinstien Bear books right now, they are perfect for Grace!


The last picture of Nick before he shaved his head (YEP, all of his hair is gone now....he has been talking about doing it for a long time, and finally did it) Stay tuned and i'll post some pictures of his hair cut....well....i mean, bald head.ha
St. Patrick's Day cuties! Thanks Grandma Ireland for the "sham-rocker" shirts!!
I love to have my diaper changed. I giggle and talk the whole time :)

3rd Anniversary of being a mommy!

On Thursday Grace turned 3! Although it was very exciting, and I love that she is growing up....i felt like i spent most of the day wanting to cry because my little baby is growing up! I think Nick started to get sick of me saying things like "can you believe 3 years ago at this time she was just getting her first bath"...or...."I never thought she would actually BE 3! That number always seemed like an eternity away, and now its here!", I swear, i feel like it was just yesterday that i was laying on the floor with her trying for hours to get her to roll over for the first time, and now she is starting gymnastics on Tuesday! I used to find it annoying when everyone would say "enjoy your time with them while they are little, they grow up so fast".... now i say it to my friends who are new moms!

Grace has changed my life in so many ways that its unbelievable. Not a day goes by that she doesnt make me smile, laugh, scream and want to cry all within the same day. Since day one she has been a drama queen. I believe she thinks the world revolves around her and i'm not sure she'll understand it doesnt until she gets out into the real world. She loves to give hugs and kisses and recently she does it even more when she knows she has done something naugty. I find myself saying "what did you do wrong" after she hugs me. She refuses to sleep with the covers on, no matter how cold it is. She talks a mile a minute and has the greatest imagination...but when we get around other people she gets really quiet and hardly says a word. She adores her baby sister and doesnt like to go anywhere with out her. She knows her doctor by name because she has been there so many times with ear infections. She asks why to just about everything, and i honestly do my best to answer everytime, but seriously, sometimes i dont know why!! Tonight she asked me "why is sponge bob a sponge?" I have no idea why!! I also have no idea how she knows who sponge bob is....i'm pretty sure we've never watched it before.

well, thats enough about Grace for now....she is my world (and her sister too) I love being home with her everyday and watching her grow and learn new things! Nothing makes me happier than waking up everyday knowing that i get to spend the day with my kiddos! Happy Birthday Gracie, you are my sunshine!!

Best Buds

I'm not always a fan of our 110 pound yellow lab (I am not exaggerating, she really is 110lbs.). Probably because she loves to eat my shoes and roll around in the mud in the back yard. The dog will seriously eat anything, Nick has caught her eating drywall in the basement. Grace however LOVES her, they can play together for hours. I am amazed at how entertained Grace is with her. Even though I think she is a pain the neck most days, I couldnt ask for a better dog to be around my kids, she is great with both of them!!

anyways- I thought this picture was cute....had to share it :)

A weekend getaway to VIVA LAS VEGAS :)

Nick and I took a MUCH needed vacation last weekend....3 nights in vegas! We had a lot of fun seeing the sites and just getting away to spend some time together! It was soo hard to leave the girls, but they had a great time spending the weekend with Grandma and Papa. We got a really good deal on the plane tickets (FREE) so we couldnt pass it up. We saw a cirque du soleil show that was really neat and we also saw the Lion King, which was pretty much awesome. Nicks favorite part of the entire trip was the wax museum, go figure :)

here are a few pictures....

picture in front of the Paris hotel...


Nick in front of the fountains at the bellagio


Angie, in Cesars Palace Hotel

Look who we met in Vegas....


one of those random pictures we took of ourselves:)


Being a weird tourist who gets a picture taken in front of a picture when the real thing is right outside....oh well. :) I believe this was at M&M world.

Grace's 3 year pics

Grace's 3 year pics, taken by Missie Lafrenz....

www.mlphotography.net

these are just a few, they turned out really good, it was hard to pick which ones to purchase!!

growing like a weed...

Love those chubby cheeks.

She is a pro at tummy time now!!


A saturday morning snooze together in mom and dads bed :)

passed out while playing under her toys....
she looks soooo big in her crib now!

Dress Up!

Grace's new favorite thing to do is play dress up.....She is such a girlie girl....thank you to Great Grandma and Grandpa McCauley for the dress up stuff!!