Getting excited for Easter

Yesterday was such a beautiful day. In fact, today wasn't bad either. Considering the lovely people on Weather Channel made me think it was going to be raining all day today, I thought the overcast day without showers was perfect. We've been able to be outside without the bother of coats, and that is very welcomed.

I decided to try to take pictures of the C. and the B. yesterday in their Easter dresses since it's supposed to be too chilly to wear them on Easter Sunday at Nene's house. Maddie picks most of her clothes now when we go clothes shopping, and from there I coordinate Faith's attire. So, she had picked the dress that she is wearing (that she just loves) and then I noticed the one for Faith that coordinated. They LOVE to match; it's quite funny actually. I feel like such a hypocrite since I used to hate when Nene would dress Lis, Steph, and I alike, but Maddie and Faith love it which I think is great. Anyway, they looked so pretty in their dresses I thought. Faith is getting to where she loves to look pretty and then admire herself in the mirror. She runs to choose a dress and loves to do 'fancy spins' in them. She was beside herself since she got to borrow Maddie's old fancy white shoes (size 6 1/2, and needless to say she looked like she had clown feet since they're WAY too big on her, but Faith thought they were wonderful!) and didn't want to take them off later. And, Maddie is Maddie. She loves a good dress and being fancy. 

I decided to hide eggs for the two of them then, and of course they loved this. They've had some Easter egg hunts around here at local parks, but I've never been too much of a fan of these since Maddie and Faith both have a tendency to get trampled from not being overly dominant. I figured they would have a lot more fun in the peace of doing it just themselves. Maddie is a speed demon and is all business, which is hilarious. Faith is the opposite and would instead stop after every few eggs to try and sneak a few tastes of the jellybeans. She can definitely be all business, but when she notices there are hidden snacks involved then she just dawdles and it's so funny. They both had a blast though and Maddie told me time and again, "Momma, this was the best!"

Now they're super, super excited for Nene's on Sunday. It's to the point where Faith was standing in her Santa pajamas while holding a purse tonight at the top of our stairs and was waving to us saying "Bah! I go Nene!" (Bye, I go to Nene's house). They've asked every night this week before bed about how many more days they had to wait to see everyone for Easter. They're anxious to finally get to the store tomorrow for their ingredients to make their Easter 'appeteaser.' It should be a nice Easter with our little ladies.

Our THREE babies

The little women spent some quality time with Dan tonight after dinner. I think he's sensing the same anxiety that I am about our newest little Constein coming so soon, and the time spent with Maddie and Faith is precious to both of us right now. We are so incredibly excited to just get to hold this new baby for the first time- the thoughts are overwhelmingly emotional at times- and of course worried about our other two babies as well. I remember that first week (well, first 4 days) when Faith was born and how much Maddie and Dan did together. It was quite hard on her when he had to go back to work and I was busy with the little Beebster the majority of the time, so I know these moments spent with Dan and the two 'big' girls will be so important and precious.

They always laugh so hard with their Daddy. I just sit back and watch, and laugh. It's really the neatest thing to see him with his little girls. They were both "dancing" on his feet and just giggling like crazy. They're constantly wrestling, and of course they love that. Then Maddie decided they needed to make him "nice and clean for marriage" (hahaha) and so they cleaned him down with baby wipes. Faith thought this was a brilliant idea. 

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After the C. and the B. went to bed tonight, Dan and I finally put together their Easter baskets. I can't wait to see their little faces! I just love Easter. The little women are so very excited for Easter and for their egg hunt with their cousins. Maddie is insistent that they are going to make an 'appeteaser' for Easter dinner and she wants to make the fancy dipped strawberries she made on her birthday. This is a fun one because Faith is able to help also.

'Flippers' are the shoes of choice

It's becoming quite comical. 

A few of the mothers at Maddie's dance class on Saturday questioned me as to why I was wearing flip flops (or 'flippers' as Maddie calls them) when there were 50mph gusts outside and it wasn't that warm to say the least. I showed them my feet and they immediately started laughing. I told them I can't get my sneakers on (not to mention, I can barely tie them) or really any other shoes on anymore without a struggle. Faith insisted that I wear my sneakers yesterday and brought them to me on the couch. She's so funny about picking out Momma's shoes. It was quite the sight as I could barely get them to fit comfortably due to my swollen feet, and then my hands would go numb as I tried to fit my heel in through the back. Lovely.

I've also recently discovered that I have some beautiful plantar's warts on the bottom of my right foot.. probably a token gift from our trip to Florida! If swollen feet, numb and tingling hands, nerve pain that shoots up and down my right side, and back pain that can be quite excruciating weren't enough, now I'm insistent on getting nice new socks for delivery so nobody has to see my disgusting feet! Haha. Not to mention, last night I hurried to answer my phone when Nene was calling and I tripped over several Power Rangers that lay in the dark on the floor. That did wonders for my feet!

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Dan and I decided to sleep out on the loveseat last night. It's hilarious because our bed has been overtaken by pretty little girls. It's my fault actually because ever since Dan has moved to third shift, I have moved them over to sleep with me since I hate having them in a different room when it's just us at home. I sleep much better knowing they are with me. Anyway, it's not that big of a deal until Dan is actually home on a break and as Maddie says "4 is just too many for our queen bed. We need a king bed like in our hotel!" Quite true actually. Maddie is known for laughing in her sleep- and sometimes kicking when she's having a bad dream- and Faith is well known for flailing herself horizontally in her sleep. Dan and I never sleep well when he is home. We make them a makeshift "bed" for the floor next to our bed with blankets and their pillows, but they still usually come up with us by about 4am. Anyway, we decided to sleep in the living room. And, it was wonderful. We were greeted by a little Crannie by 7:30am with a basket full of Power Rangers and I had to wake up Faith at a little past 8am. Not only did we sleep better, but they also slept better having our bed all to themselves! Little princesses.

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Maddie decided during bathtime last night that should this baby be a boy, she likes the name Jason. Named after the 'Red Ranger' of course! These girls and their Power Rangers all of a sudden. And, Faith goes around saying "Billy Bluuue" for the Blue Ranger. It's too funny.

Almost 35 weeks

I feel like an aged woman these days. And yet, I am definitely not ready to give up the feeling of the baby moving inside! I tell Dan all the time, "I love being pregnant" and he looks at me funny. He knows how hard it has been physically this time around towards the end, but yet I still love the feeling of being pregnant. 

I still have nerve pain up and down my right side that can be quite crippling. My back pain isn't as severe as it had been, and it's usually worse in the morning. But, now I have carpal tunnel's in my hands and it's creeping up my arms. It's not much fun to go numb when trying to brush my teeth, shave my legs, hold my poor Beebster, or even hold their little hands. My fingers start to tingle when I try and button their buttons or tie Maddie's new shoes, etc. On top of that, my feet are now swollen and that also is creeping up the bottom part of my legs. It's a lot worse at night when the walking around has caught up to me. Dan gets on my case about just laying down, but there is always something that has to be done. Needless to say, my feet look like an old woman's slippers by 11pm or so and it is quite painful at times.

Easter 'party' and fun weekend

I tell my little women constantly that Dan and I are so incredibly lucky to have the two sweetest girls as ours. I tell them also that they are two very lucky little girls-- to be able to do fun stuff all the time with the two of us, and to have each other and such awesome family that loves them. I know for sure that they both know this, and most certainly appreciate everything about their lives.

It was a fun weekend starting with dance class yesterday. Faith (the honorary 8th member of Maddie's dance class) and Maddie just love going on Saturdays to see Ms. Dawn. Maddie is definitely there to learn and to do the best she can (she can be all business which is quite funny), but she has also met some little friends there that are so sweet. She and Faith are lucky to have these little girls as friends, and I'm hopeful we'll continue to see them even after their dance recital at the end of May. 

We went to Gring's Mill after lunch and after Maddie's class. They were doing a free Easter eggstravaganza, and of course these little ladies deemed it their 'Easter Party.' They loved it. Faith of course loved the petting farm, and Maddie was a little sad she couldn't ride a pony. She quickly got excited though when it was their turn to collect their dyed eggs and make a bag for them. Faith is in love with the color blue, and traded two of her white eggs for "bluuue" eggs and kept two white ones. She and I sponge painted her little white eggs. Maddie traded her white eggs for 3 pinks and one blue, so she and Dan went straight over to make their little bunny bag. I helped Faith with hers then, and they were both quite proud of their creations.

We went to Lancaster then since Dan was headed to the classic Constein party last night. We stopped to see Grammy first, and wouldn't you know Grammy had temporary tattoos for them! They have been obsessed with temporary tattoos now for a few weeks, and I haven't been able to find them anywhere (wanted to get them for their Easter baskets) so it was quite a nice surprise. Faith was already asking "where Nene, where Bop Bop?" while we were there and of course they were both ecstatic when we finally got to Nene and Grampa's house.

We cut our visit short this morning since Faith seemed to develop a cough within an hour of getting to Lancaster yesterday, but the C. and the B. had so much fun. They were finally able to watch "Snow White" on Nene's VCR and just LOVED it. They love all the dwarfs and know all the songs, and yet hadn't even seen the movie until yesterday. They spent awhile outside this morning helping Grampa collect sticks for the stick pile. Maddie started collecting wildflowers from their yard to "make the stick pile prettier." Leave it to Cran! Nene got out Uncle Schnoogo and Uncle Chris' old Power Rangers, and they have fallen in love now with Power Rangers. It's quite funny actually. Maddie has them divided by girls ('Power Girls') and boys ('Power Boys') and it works out wonderfully, because Faith happens to love all the boys- especially blue of course- and Maddie loves the girls. They each went to sleep with one tonight.

We took them to Daniel Boone park this afternoon, and they loved being able to just run. They came upon a little house that is still intact with everything still in it, and decided this was a house where "8 adorable little children used to live, Momma!" (according to Madison, and then Faith thinks everything Maddie says is just perfect, so she enthusiastically repeats, "Ess, Dee!"). Dan grilled for dinner tonight, and I made them their corn on the cob, pasta, and fruit salad that they wanted so it was a nice dinner. 

Needless to say, we had a nice weekend.

... always let your conscience be your guide

I love the conversations that I have with my C. and my B. It's not just with Maddie either, because Faith is a very intuitive little girl and she loves being part of our conversations and sharing her input as well.

During lunch today, Maddie started asking me about how she'll know the difference between 'good' and 'bad' for the rest of her life. I reminded them both of Jiminy Cricket, and to picture him living in their little heads and that is what a conscience is. I told Maddie that everybody makes mistakes and nobody is perfect, but that if they listen to their conscience and remember what they deem 'good' versus 'bad,' that they should be set. Maddie told me, "I know! Daddy will be my conscience for the rest of my life!" I told this to Dan when he got up in the early afternoon, and needless to say, he was quite happy with this comment and proud of his Crannie! It's funny though because then they ask for hypothetical questions, and have to take turns. Faith loves this game too, and they love being asked things about how they'd respond to certain situations. It's really funny the conversations that we have! And, so sweet. 

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We enjoyed the beautiful day today. We went for a long walk this morning and then had a late lunch because they were enjoying drawing with their chalks so much. I swear every day that they're out there drawing their elaborate murals (Faith INSISTS that I draw a "boo," a "baa," a "(sniffs with her nose which means a bunny)," a "(makes fish noises for a fish)," and then a Dee, a Dis, a Momma, and a Da-da every single day!) the very next day it rains and erases all of our work. Tomorrow it is supposed to storm, so there goes our hard work from today. Oh well. They love it. We went down to the creek this afternoon too. They are obsessed with their Bear Scout Berenstain Bears books from the library these days, and they checked out a new one about cows eating onion grass. They were so enthralled by the onion grass today at the creek, and even moreso when I pulled it up from the ground and showed them the onion bulb. They cringed at the smell, but then loved the fact that there were about 6 earthworms attached to the mound of dirt (or 'wrigglers' as they call them!).  They've also been enjoying collecting wildflowers now that they're in bloom again.

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I was so excited to get a box today from Carly for all three girls. Her mom, Just Meem, makes the absolute cutest monogrammed stuff and Carly was sweet enough to send some of the cutest things for Maddie, Faith, and little Breebster. Of course, Maddie and Faith LOVE receiving stuff and thought the hairbows with their matching 'big sister' shirts were the best things ever. Faith immediately wanted me to pull out her braids so that she could wear her "BOW!" Then she loves to look at herself in the mirror. My littlest woman received some of the cutest monogrammed stuff complete with a onesie with her name on it, a little hat, a bib, and two little headbands with a bow. I loved it all! She's got quite the collection of cute little girl spring/summer clothes now, as I've been checking out the consignment shop constantly and found 5 different dresses/outfits last week for $2.99 or less. All of them, except one, still had tags attached to them and were from Carter's or Gymboree. I love finding deals, and then looking at her stuff every night!

Scavenger hunt

Giant had quite the cool idea when we visited today.

They had scavenger lists in the produce section. Faith grabbed one and a crayon, and Maddie grabbed one and a crayon. Faith scribbled all over it, and it kept her quite occupied. Maddie thought this was the coolest thing ever, and it was a really cute idea. There were a bunch of pictures of items that they had to locate, and then once they located it, they had to write down the letter in that space. Eventually, it spelled out 'Happy Easter' once Maddie found all the letters. But, it was really neat for Faith too because she got a kick out of helping her Dee look for green bell peppers, carrots, apples, chocolate milk, etc etc. Maddie was so proud of herself when she filled in all the letters, and wrote her name so proudly on the paper in her blue crayon. She thought it automatically meant that she had won the prize of the big Easter basket, but it meant only that she was now entered in a chance to win! It was neat though to see their little proud faces as they walked up to customer service to turn in their papers (Faith's complete with scribbles!). 

Now I'm trying to think up a scavenger hunt that they can do for Easter with their cousins. Obviously it would be something easier without having to write down a message with letters, but Dan thought it was a cool idea too and we've been thinking of little prizes for each of them as well.