Rexfest and Gardens

We attended a different festival every weekend during the month of May. Back on the first weekend of this month we spent an afternoon at Rexfest. Michael was on call, so I was on my own with the girls, but we did run into Ninong and Ninang.

The girls' favorite part of Rexfest was the Irish dancing! Bella thought it looked so fun that she danced around next to the stage.

The Little Rock Council of Garden Clubs hosted tours of some residential gardens the same weekend as Rexfest. The girls and I were able to enjoy a few of them despite the muggy weather. I can't believe that some of these views were actually in someone's backyard!

During Bella's naptime, Gabi blew bubbles in our [less scenic] back yard.

Bella's Gymnastic Olympics

Bella is our very expressive two-and-a-half-year-old. She has the biggest smile and the loudest cry; she is hot or cold but genuine either way. Her wild hair requires attention every day but also garners compliments everywhere we go. She is active and constantly in motion. When she gets sick, it affects her more than most and causes awful coughs. We love her so much!

Bella's favorite colors are purple and yellow, a preference which colors most of her decisions from crayon or candy selection to which clothes or hairbows she is willing to wear. Getting her dressed for these pictures took much encouragement and distraction, and in the end only worked because she loves ladybugs (she'd just prefer yellow or purple ladybugs).

Bella started gymnastics this year, and it is the perfect activity for her! She took a parent-child class in the mornings when no one else was using the gym. The gym held a Spring Olympics program so all the classes could show off their skills. The program was extremely chaotic with multiple age groups rotating around, plus having an audience (which included Lolo and Lola!) was very confusing and distracting. I put together a video of the Olympics program, although my video-editing software was continually crashing, so I didn't professionally finish it. Watch for her to "blow kisses" at the end.



Bella adores her bigger sister Gabi and happily copies everything she does as they play. Bella is also a sweet big sister who loves to help take care of the baby. One day while I was standing in line at the post office, Bella kept talking and singing to Katarina and tucking her in with the little blanket I had in her carseat.

The last picture is Bella and some friends catching bubbles at preschool. Their last week of school was last week, and Bella misses it already (especially since big sister Gabi is still in school through this week).

The Writing on the Wall

Gabi posing in the hydrangeas (not in bloom) at CTK for Gramma Jane, who is considering planting these in her garden.

Gabi's class took a field trip to the Wonder Place, and she and Nathan were entranced by the rolling ball sculpture.

Back in April when Uncle Stephen and Uncle Brian came to visit, we found this on Gabi's wall after naptime. I can just see Bella scribbling on the wall and big sister Gabi stepping into a mini-Mommy role. Regarding writing on the wall:

And after I had a short talk with Gabi about the fact that I didn't like to see that she had written on the wall, I soon find an addendum she wrote to herself:

So then I instructed Gabi to erase all of it, which she did, and that solved the problem.

The first week in May, Gabi's PreK class performed a spring play called Down by the Creek Bank. Gabi and her friend Grey were little white ducks. In the weeks leading up to the program, Gabi would recite poems from the play about various animals and tell me whose line each was. She has an excellent memory.

In the classroom after the play, Katarina was surrounded by kids adoring her. Gabi's friend Samantha was especially enamored with the baby.

That same day was picture day in Gabi's dance class. The recital is not until June this year, so you can look forward to that video later.

Gabi loves to help me cook (or fold laundry, or take care of her sisters, or generally whatever I'm doing). When she gets to help cook, she likes to wear her apron that Gramma Jane made her:

When Gabi and I played her Funny Phone game during quiet time one afternoon, one of Gabi's activities was to draw a strawberry for me to guess. Later, when she used the alphabet magnets to hold this drawing on the refrigerator, she needed three Rs to spell "strawberry" but we only have one of each letter, so she improvised.

I believe this happened while I was packing for our trip to Notre Dame. Katarina woke up, and Gabi drew this to tell me that her baby sister was crying. We like to call Katarina by the nickname Kätchen, which is what Gabi was spelling here.

And here's a "map" that Gabi drew for Bella:

Gabi has an art table with a light that shines through cards, making a shadow of a Disney picture on the table for her to trace. The images aren't crisp, so tracing is more difficult than tracing from a coloring book. Here is Flounder:

Katarina: 2 months

At her two-month check-up last week, Katarina weighed 10 lbs 9 oz (25-30%) and measured 21-1/2 inches long (20-25%). Her head circumference was 14-3/4" (5-10%). She is a perfect little baby! I often receive comments comparing her to a baby doll to express how pretty Katarina is: "She's so pretty! She looks just like a china doll." "You have a doll baby!" "Oh, that's a real baby? I thought she was a doll!" People also compliment her gorgeous skin tone and calm demeanor. I'm certainly very proud of my baby!

Kätchen is now 10-and-a-half weeks old. Two weeks ago, she reached the two-month mark. She is vocalizing more now, cooing sweetly when she's content. I adore her little voice!

Little Katarina shares her smiles more frequently these days, and I love to see every one! She definitely recognizes me, and her face will brighten up when she finds me.

Katarina is very alert and loves to look at her surroundings. She is interested in the toys hanging on her bouncer and she'll watch the mobile above her crib. Her favorite entertainment, though, is her big sisters!

Katarina is not a fan of the pacifier, but occasionally she'll take one.

My baby has been learning to self-soothe. In the past week, she has more consistently found her thumb to suck on.

Katarina is a wonderful baby, but she likes her 1 AM and 3:30 AM and 6 AM feedings. I am so exhausted, I feel like a zombie walking through the days. I tend to fall asleep in the chair while feeding her at some point in the night. Sometimes, if she wakes up more often than usual or has trouble going back to sleep, I'll bring the baby into our bed for her final nocturnal meal.

Katarina will sleep for several hours in the afternoon, though. That makes taking a nap so tempting, and some days I have to succumb. Bella still naps, but Gabi appreciates my attention and company during quiet time; thus, afternoons are the best bonding time I have with my eldest daughter, so I try to stay awake to play with Gabi.