Down by the River

Saturday was beautiful and we spent part of the morning at Harbor Park, checking out the Connecticut River. A few weeks from now, Harbor Park just might be flooded (as it is almost every spring), so we wanted to go down while we had the chance. The girls had fun, chasing seagulls, taking pictures and exploring.

This is such a sweet picture - Elizabeth holding on to Emily's waist to make sure that she doesn't fall into the river.

Running away....and back.

Like mother like daughter...I can't wait to see what kinds of things she took pictures of down there.

A lovely Connecticut River seagull.

I couldn't really get Emily to pose with this head - little wonder, huh? It's creepy looking.

Passover Seder

On Friday night, Sarah and Rohan invited us, along with Kori & Eamonn, to their house to celebrate a Goy (non-Jewish) friend Passover Seder.  It was spectacular.  The food was amazing and we had a great time, celebrating the Jewish tradition of Passover.  Great friends and great food - who could ask for more?

The seder plate.

Matzah

Rohan pours the wine.

Sarah, really getting into the Haggadah (which we all took turns reading).

Proof positive that Lee will eat anything - including Gevelte fish.

Kori and Eamonn, savoring the scent of the matzah-ball soup.

For the Birds

Last weekend, when we were shopping for some outdoor furniture, the girls spied a bunch of birdhouses.  They came in all shapes and sizes and, because we were at an unfinished furniture store, the vast majority were unfinished.  For some reason, however, Elizabeth fixated on these pink (finished!) birdhouses - she thinks that they look like castles and we're not about to tell her that the tags read "chapel."  Anyway, each girl got to pick out her own birdhouse and (thank goodness for small blessings) they picked the same ones.  Once we got home, they carried them everywhere, filling them with "food" for the birds until they finally persuaded Lee to hang them.  And now we wait...for all the birds to come nest in our tree....

Matching birdhouses.

They basically wouldn't let got of them, carrying them back and forth between the front and back yards, over to our neighbors' houses to show them off....

As soon as Lee put them up, Elizabeth begged me to take pictures of them.

A Sisterly Bond

Over the last couple of weeks, Emily's vocabulary has virtually exploded (for example, she stopped calling Elizabeth "NaaNaa" and now only calls her Elizabeth). And while Elizabeth never seemed to have difficulty understanding anything that Emily said, Emily's new ability to communicate really seems to have deepened their sisterly bond. Although they fight and wrestle (those of you on FB have seen the wrestling video), they also seem to love each other very much. Elizabeth is a (usually) a patient teacher with Emily and very protective. Emily worships her sister and imitates her in any and every way. I hope that they always have this amazing sister bond.

Telling Elizabeth a "secret"

She follows Elizabeth wherever she goes....

Bubbles Squared

To make sure that we keep the record clear, Elizabeth is not the only bubble lover in our house - Emily could play with bubbles all day as well.  As you can see, however, she has not quite mastered the art of making bubbles....which means that she either torments her sister by breaking every bubble that Elizabeth makes or torments her parents to blow bubbles for her.  

Bubbles

Bubbles continue to be one of Elizabeth's favorite activities.  And while she is quite good at blowing them herself, she much prefers that Mommy and Daddy do the hard work, so that she can chase them, catch them and pop them.  Here are a few shots of when she was still willing to blow her own bubbles.  I think that Lee and I need to invest in an industrial strength bubble machine!  

Adventures of Elizabeth and Emily

Now that the girls are getting older and have a bit more stamina, we can walk more places (instead of always getting out the stroller or wagon).  Last Sunday, we walked to the playground at our local elementary school; once we were there, the girls played ball, went on the swings and played on some of the playground equipment.  Then we walked back.  It was a great way to spend a gorgeous afternoon!

Heading up the street (everyone had a lot more energy on the way there than the way back).

Playing ball with Daddy.

Just swinging.

Bye-bye playground - see you soon.

A Mirror Fit for a Princess

One of the great gifts from Miss Melissa and Mr. Mark was a make-it-yourself princess mirror that Elizabeth wanted to create immediately.  Aware of Emily's propensity for getting involved (ahem, ruining) in Elizabeth's activities, we held off on this activity until Emily was napping on Sunday afternoon.  Then, Elizabeth went to work.  I restrained myself completely from butting in (a tremendous feat!) and thus, the princess mirror is completely of Elizabeth's own making.  She's quite proud of it.

Ready to begin.

Gluing the jewels around the mirror.

The glitter glue - in purple, pink and gold - was a hit.

Proudly displaying the finished product!

March for Babies

In May 2008, our friends Jen & Sal welcomed their son Tavio into the world. Tavio, who was several weeks premature, weighed less than 2 pounds at birth.

Today, Tavio is a handsome, happy, thriving little boy. On April 26th, just a few days before Tavio's first birthday, our family will join Jen, Sal and Tavio and the rest of Tavio's Team in the March for Babies, a four mile walk in support of the March of Dimes. The money that Tavio's Team - and thousands of other teams across the country - raises will support research offering preventions and solutions for babies born too soon, educate women on things that they can do to increase their chances of having a health baby, and provide comfort and information to families with a newborn in intensive care. Click here (or on the March for Babies icon on the sidebar) to support Tavio's Team!!

Saturday Night is Pizza Night

Ever since we made pizza with Mike, Kelly and Felix during our trip to New Mexico, we have become a pizza-making-family.  The girls love pizza (as do Lee and I) and making our own is fun,  healthier, tastier and less expensive than ordering out.  Saturday night seems to be our standard pizza making night.  Here are some shots from this past Saturday night.

Everyone wants a turn rolling out the dough, although it's really Lee that does the hard work.

Helping Daddy slice the pizza.

Foolin' Around

The girls love it when Lee "rough houses" with them.  Here they are, fooling around on Saturday morning.  They couldn't get enough!