The girls and stuff

I think these two are the most gorgeous, precious, amazing creatures I have ever laid eyes on. Nope. I know they are.
There's some dress-up fun sprinkled throughout this post.
I don't know what it is exactly, but I love it.

Those are Daddy's socks.

My sweet butterfly, Natalie!

Trying on our RenFest costumes at home.

Had to get a shot of the back as well.

And of course, Joanna had to admire herself in the mirror!

Before the festival, I was debating on whether to take the sit-n-stand or the wagon. I just couldn't decide! We decided to try out Natalie in the wagon on the "rough terrain" of our backyard. Technically, they don't recommend the wagons (even though there are seat belts) until 18mos, but Natalie was very stable.

I think Joanna actually managed to pull her a couple of feet!

Awwwwwww...

Random nature shot:

I am constantly amazed by that rose plant. I neglect it terribly, and yet it still blooms. Imagine what it could do if I paid it any attention at all...

Another fashion experiment:

Natalie's size 12mos jeans and shirt and Mommy's shoes. (She's finishing up a banana, if you're curious about her expression.)

Tonight I made stir-fry. Ingredients (in the order I added them, not in the order of amount or anything): olive oil, garlic, chicken thighs, carrots, broccoli, yellow squash, cabbage, brown rice, soy sauce.Before I added the soy sauce, I took a portion out:Then, with the help of my strong husband (I could've done it; it was just easier for him :)), I ground it up in the food mill.

Cool, huh?!

I added a little apple sauce to it for moisture; it was pretty dry for Miss Natalie. She's to the point where I could have pretty much just cut up everything into bites for finger food, but she got more of it this way, and it was fun! She liked it a lot. The applesauce was just handy, but I could've added a bunch of things to give it more of a "stage 3" baby food texture: another puree, yogurt, milk, maybe even just water. Yum! I love that she's eating more and more of what we're eating. I'm trying to keep as much salt and such as I can out of her food; she likes it plain, and it's healthiest that way!

Ren Fest '09!

I had to take a picture of the sky today. Not a cloud in sight. It was so clear, so crisp, so beautiful outside. Now, I love me some clouds, but this was pretty good, I have to say. There were no mosquitoes, no frizzy hair -- good for Jessica! We arrived close to 10:00 this morning. I was hoping for 9, but the girls actually slept in this morning! I cannot believe it -- I have been desperately wanting to sleep in (just to 7!) and they pick today -- funny little girls. :)

None of us have particularly cute faces in this picture, but I like it:

Joanna's chariot:
Trying to dress Miss Joanna one handed:
Ha!

Our little butterfly-fairy got to go (outside the womb) this year:

Poor kid got attacked by mosquitoes this week on her face! (It was during the whole vomit incident on Tuesday, which is why I didn't realize she was being eaten alive in our driveway!)

So that's what the spots on her face are, FYI. Still so stinkin' cute, though!

I couldn't help but including a few pictures from last year throughout this post:

Our family pic. Sadly, we did not get one of these this year.

Look how short my hair is and how swollen I am!

I never realize just how brown my hair is until I see pictures -- man, it's dark!

So instead of a family shot, we got a picture of me and the girls and a picture of Matt and the girls.

You'll notice there are three of Matt and the girls here. I've got a question for my photo shop friends: Do you think I could merge these pictures somehow? Or replace one girl with a better shot from another picture?

Like in this one, I LOVE Matt and Natalie's expressions, but Joanna's is terrible!

Here, Matt and Joanna look super-cute, but Natalie doesn't exactly look her best.

So anyway, I had to include all three so you could see the potential. :)

A shot of Joanna and Me from last October (well, technically Natalie's there, too :)).

And this year:

I cannot believe how much more grown-up she looks! She was still such a baby last year.

Joanna discovered running down the hill was very fun.

Daddy thought so, too. :)

Joanna also discovered that falling on the hill is not so fun.

Lunchtime!

Mostly Natalie had baby food, but I let her have a few tiny bites of turkey leg, too! What's Ren Fest without turkey legs?!

Mmmmm....

Because I had the camera...

Nobody got a picture of me eating the giant turkey leg. :)

Another flashback:

After a little while, my butterfly needed a nap.

So I tucked her in the Moby wrap.

And she fell fast asleep.

Until I sat down.

They're not the same ages here, but I think my little sleeping girls look alike:

A side note -- I want one of these:

Don't you think my girls would be so stylin' walking around Kingwood in a carriage?!!

Momma and her girls!

Joanna ended up on Daddy's shoulders for the walk out of the park.

Seemed familiar... and it was.

This year, we got horsey stamps as we left (you know, just in case we decided a few miles down the road to turn around a come back :)). Joanna was very excited, because she got one too.

When you come inside and just dump your stuff, it is very interesting.

On the potty training front: it's a little harder to do this kind of thing with a little girl who's new to panties, but she DID SO WELL! The public bathrooms today freaked her out a little. She held a few things back until we got home to our safe toilet, if you know what I mean. We had to stop twice on the way out there, because Joanna loves to pee at "Old MacDonald's Farm," which is what she calls McDonald's. That is hilarious. She only had one accident all day and it was on the way home. She peed right before we left the fair (in her potty in the car), and suddenly, immediately needed to go in Conroe. She peed a gallon (only a tiny bit in her panties!), so I'm impressed she was able to hold what she did -- she really had to go! I must say that having the little potty in the car is a good idea, especially for days like this. If we're just out running errands, she can go in the grocery store or Target or wherever, but we just didn't know exactly where the next bathroom would be, driving through the "country" today.

I know you all were just ecstatic to hear about the potty escapes. Thank you for tuning in!

If you want to read the post from Ren Fest last year, click here.