More catching up....

Several of you probably heard about the spider bite that Danielle got.  Here she is showing that her eye ISN'T swollen shut anymore!  (sorry for the messy hair shot, Danielle!)

....the little tiny red mark above her right eye is the bite....

Aubrey organized a play date at the park last week -- the girls had so much fun!  What you can't see in this picture is that Ashton (4 1/2 months old) is also on his tummy and the two of them are laughing at each other.

Danielle insisted on going on the carousel at the park, and then promptly decided she was too scared to ride a horsey....so we rode on the bench seat instead....

And Ashley has learned how to sit up!  She's discovering just how much fun it is to be able to get to any toy that she has dropped (and Mommy is loving it, too!).....I can't believe how big she's getting!!!

.....and she's learning how to crawl!!!  Waaaaa!!!!  How is my little tiny able to do this already?!?!  I'm not ready for her to be mobile!!!!

Just Hanging Out!

It's been a pretty busy month and I've fallen behind on my postings, so here's an attempt at chatching you all up with our little corner of the world....Ashley has graduated to the high chair! She loves squash and peas.....actually she loves it all, but carrots and green beans seem to give her a little rash if she has them too many times in a row....we'll see if she outgrows it! Danielle is learning how to share. It's not easy -- everything used to be only hers and now we ask her to share ALL her toys with everybody.....even Mommy and Daddy. Did I mention that she is also learning how to nicely ask for help? This is her asking Mommy to please help make Laura the Carrot from VeggieTales..... ....and every once in a while we get to hang out together!!! Ashley LOVES her Daddy -- he can always get a smile and laugh from her.....

....and did I mention that she's usually pretty chill? Especially if it involves just hangin' with Dad!

Someone stole the camera.....

So here's my apology and excuse for not posting anything recently -- for some reason, Bob has stolen the camera! It couldn't possibly be that he's working like crazy.....he bought a new building last Friday, started work on that one, is coordinating the build-back on the fire-damaged building, had tenants move out unexpectedly from our property in Albany, and is trying to document everything everywhere. Yeah, he's REALLY busy.....and working really hard.....

In other news, the girls are adorable. Danielle has now decided that "The Iron Giant" is her favorite movie, but it's really a toss-up with Veggie Tales. Ashley has decided that she no longer wants to stay in one place and is working REALLY hard to learn how to crawl. So far, she pushes up onto all fours and then lunges towards whatever she wants -- very soon she'll be my mobile little girl! Hopefully I'll get the camera back soon and you'll get to see new pictures.....

Playtime fun!

Grandma Sweetie found an adorable play-doh kit for Danielle's birthday....Bob, Larry, Junior, and Laura have been a great fun!!!

She loves to make all the characters.....
....notice that Laura has a tennis racket and Larry is riding a skateboard.....

In other news, Ashley has decided that the exersaucer is THE place to be!

.....she's figuring out how to reach for things (and get what she's trying to)....

.....and is generally just all smiles! What a cutie-pie!!!

My two cuties!!

Danielle loves to help Mommy and LOVES to hold Ashley. I actually caught a picture of it the other day....

....not quite comfy at first......
...but then BOTH of them smiled!! Moments like these make being a Mommy the best job in the world!!!!

Daddy with the Girls

Ashley has officially discovered toys!

....and where better to play than hanging out with Daddy?
Daddy loves his little one!!!

....and Ashley is loving her caterpillar....

On another day, Danielle was still sleepy after her nap.....and Daddy was trying to catch a few winks on the couch....

.....so they got to cuddle for a little while.....

Aw.....how cute!

Hello Kitty cake construction

Well, my Mom always made wonderful cakes for us, so I've been trying to keep the tradition alive with my own little girls! The first birthday was a butterfly cake that turned out pretty cute, last year was cupcakes on a tower with a Nemo theme, and this year ended up being Hello Kitty. How I was going to make a cake, I had no idea. So I decided to totally wing it -- and here are the results!

The napkin -- my inspiration.
And I'm such a geek that I drafted up the pattern and printed it out to use as a template for cutting the top layer out.....

.....which then got put on top of the base layer that was already frosted and sprinkled....

....and then came frosting, jelly beans for the eyes and nose, and black licorice for the wiskers....
.....cake scaps....which taste just as good as the cake, but have the added bonus of needing as much frosting as you want on them!