11 Weeks Old

Katherine Jean

Jubilee Faith

Father's Day Weekend

     This past weekend was quite a busy one.  On Saturday we celebrated Madelynn's birthday.  Sunday was Father's Day, and we spent the day with my Johnson family.  Even though the weekend was full, it was very nice.

     Saturday was the day we celebrated Madelynn's second birthday party.  I can't believe that she is already two!!!  Her party was at a park, and it was very hot.  Everyone seemed to have a great time, including the birthday girl.  She was a little cranky at first because her nap had been interrupted, but it was her party, and she could cry if she wanted to!  The girls seemed to tolerate the heat well, and they were very smiley.  These two years have gone by so quickly. 

   Sunday was Father's Day, and it did not go the way I wanted it to at all!  I had a perfect image in my head of James opening his Father's Day gifts and card while eating his breafast in bed.  What really happened was that I used all of the eggs the night before making cupcakes and deviled eggs for the Father's Day celebration with family.  Of course I didn't realize this until I had used all of them.  I had designed a card for James, and it had not arrived.  So, the only thing I could do was make a joke of it!  I grabbed a breakfast bar and his presents and woke him up gently.  A few weeks ago I had the girl's footprints done, so he was able to open those on time. Even though James did not receive everything according to my imperfect plan, he still said that he had a great day! 

     We went to my family's house because my grandma was home from the hospital, and my grandpa's birthday was the next day.  My Aunt Penny cooked, and we spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing.  Madelynn played with bubbles, and the girls were inside being held.  It was a great day.  Here's pictures of Jim's gifts.



Texas Trip

     Almost two weeks ago, the girls and I ventued to Texas with Susan.  Like our last trip to Texas, this one was also spontaneous.  Susan wanted to go to Texas to watch Abby's ballet recital.  Susan called us the day she was leaving to see if Katherine, Jubilee, and I wanted to join her.  Following getting permission from James who would have to stay behind to work, we started to pack!  I think I packed enough clothes for the girls for an entire month.  We had initially discussed staying in a hotel, but Joe and Heidi invited all four of us to stay with them at their house.  The girls would sleep in Hannah's crib, and I would sleep in Abby's bunk bed. 

     Susan and I entertained ourselves by listening to books-on-tape, and the girls slept for a good portion of the journey.  Once we arrived at Joe and Heidi's house, the girls immediately turned fussy!  They were promptly fed and put to bed because it was their bedtime.  Saturday was a nice, relaxing day.  Heidi and Abby had to attend Abby's ballet dress rehearsal.  Joey went with Heidi's parents to a pre-racing event that was happening.  Joe, Susan, and I watched Lizzy, Hannah, and the twins.  Lizzy was fascinated with the twins, and she was very helpful.  Hannah was very happy and content; she was just figuring out the mechanics of crawling.  For lunch we ate Dickie's, which is an amazing bbq restaurant.  On Sunday was the ballet recital.  I really enjoyed it because it was a Christian recital.  All of the children behaved themselves.  After the recital we went to Heidi's parents for a pool party. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly. 

     All of our nieces and nephew enjoyed seeing the girls, and it was a very pleasant trip. Joey was able to get Jubilee to smile at him.  He was constantly around them, and he kept saying how much he wanted to have them.  Abby loved to look at them; she really helped me give them their baths!  Abby was also very talented in telling who was who.  Lizzy wanted to play with them, and she watched me take care of them.  Hannah didn't really discover them until the last day.  She wanted to touch their faces. 

     On our way home, the girls stayed in a hotel for the first time.  All in all the girls tolerated the road trip and being in a different setting pretty well.  When we head to Branson next week, that will see easy!

Our Little Ladies

     Our girls are now two-months-old!  It is hard to believe that they have only been here this short amount of time.  They have turned into two sweet and smiling babies with very different personalities.  We have been blessed with two very easy-going babies.  For the past two nights they have slept for eight hours in a row!  Both of them are pretty easy console.  At two months they have changed so much!

Jubilee

     Jubilee has turned into our smiley baby!  She is our cuddler, and she definitely knows when I'm holding her.  She has a certain position that she likes to be held in, and it will put her to sleep in less than ten minutes.  Jubilee has the tendency to wake up during her morning nap before Katie, and all she wants is for me to hold her.  Jubilee also has a stink eye/glare that is pretty fierce.  James says that it reminds him of "my look".  She is also a talker.  She will make noises, especially to James, when someone is talking to her.  Jubilee is a little heavier than Katherine, which is how it was when they were born.

Katherine

     Katherine is our independent baby!  She prefers to fall asleep by herself.  If you put her in a bouncy seat or a swing, she will go to sleep.  Her favorite way to be held is up by my shoulder because she loves to look around and investigate what is going on.  Katie still loves her tummy time, and she likes to pull herself up on her arms.  Katie also has the tendency to sleep with her arms up, which I have noticed James does.  Katie absolutely loves her bath time. Katie is definitely taller than Jubilee.

Bank On It

     This weekend was filled with many activities.  On Saturday James and I went clothes shopping for the girls.  They are in an awkward stage where they are almost completely out of their newborn clothes,but they do not fit in 3 month clothes at all.  Therefore, they are in this limbo stage of 0-3 month clothing, which is sort of hard to find.  We then went to Hobby Lobby, which is one of our favorite stores.  I was able to limit myself to only buying a photo album.  I only had one baby photo album, and I wanted the girls to have one of their own to look at when they get older. 

     Once we returned home from our shopping escapades, James decided he was going to hang the girl's banks up.  Jim's Grandpa Cole has made each of the great-grandchildren their own banks.  Their is a slot for saving, tithing, and toys.  Before the girls were born, James and I started to put money in their banks. Of course we both naturally put anything in the tithing slot.  James tried to convince me to put their names on them; however, I was way too nervous/perfectionistic to attempt to do that. Katherine would not fit on the name plate, so we put her nickname of "Katie" on it. With Jubilee watching us curiously, we put them on a little shelf in their nursery.  Of course it had to be put pretty low on the wall, so I can reach to put money in them!  When they were placed on the shelf, I jokingly said to James, "Well, it's official, we have children!!!!"

     On Sunday Susan, Dennis, and I ventured to Albion, Indiana to attend Carissa's graduation.  The girls didn't really make a sound, which made me feel better. They were sporting some adorable bonnets Granny Susan had made them. We then went to Grandpa and Grandma Cole's and conversed on the porch. The girls were able to meet almost all of their cousins and aunts and uncles.  We then stopped and chatted with Uncle Ed and Aunt Jane.  The girls behaved for the most part, but they got a little fussy towards the end of the night for having such a busy day.