Two Talkers

April is nearly done and as in the past, it's been a crazy, busy month with the first few weeks in May looking to be about the same. We've been to Rome and celebrated Easter and our Anniversary all in the past 3 weeks or so.

Just as exciting as those big events, are a few new things the kids are doing. For one, we have a new talker. Ross is saying about 10 words and is constantly trying to mimic just about everything we say. His words may not be crystal clear, but they are most certainly words. He had been babbling "mama" and "dada" for quite awhile, but one morning when I put his waffle on his high chair tray and he looked up at me and said "hot", I knew we had a first real word! And just like that, the words keep rolling out...dog, truck, more, uh-oh, cookie. He quacks like a duck, vrooms like a car and can point to his head, mouth, ears, belly and feet. I'm impressed, but I guess I don't count since I am his #1 fan!

Lover Dover

Ross doesn't like that he can't get up the stairs with the gate up, so he protests by sitting on the bottom step!

Another favorite danger zone that Ross loves is the couch. He could spend all day on it!

Ross isn't the only one saying new things everyday. Bridget has been saying some pretty interesting things lately too! At 3 1/2 she is a true sponge-soaking up every little thing she sees and hears. This is good and bad, as you can imagine! On the good side, she has the best little manners I've ever seen. Asking the librarian, "Can I have some crayons for coloring, pleeeeease?" She also loves to go out to eat and order her dinner all by herself.

On the not so good side are things like, "What the heck?" and "Oh my God!" and my least favorite is the "Hmph!" sound she makes when I tell her something she doesn't want to hear. She's got a sassy side, but as far as I know she reserves this behavior for home and not so much at school. I think...

Looking sassy is just as fun as being sassy. She loves my shoes!

A mouthful of cookie at her school Easter party!

All 4 of us went out to eat on our Anniversary last week. We started trying to explain to Bridget what an anniversary was and how some day she would get married to a boy. She clung to Todd and cried, "I don't want to marry a boy! I only want my daddy to marry me!"

How could you not get caught up in the Royal Wedding? A real-life prince and princess? Yes, please!

They are rare and never very good, but I love any shot of them together I can manage to get. Especially when they're being nice to each other!

All Things Easter

What isn't there to love about Easter? The bright colors, the egg hunts, the new outfits, the excuse to eat chocolate at 7am, the family get togethers, the stuffing of the baskets...we did it all and loved every second of the yet another holiday with our favorite little peeps...

I'm doing the matching outfits for as looooooong as I can!

Saturday morning started with dance class with which Bridget has grown to love more and more. She's getting the dance moves and singing along with the music and just loving every little thing about it.

We rushed out of dance class when it was over to make it to our neighborhood egg hunt. We changed in the car and got there about quarter after 10, which was about 3 minutes too late...egg hunt was over. We had an empty basket and a line about 40 kids deep for the free bounce house. Fortuneatly, we have our very own bounce house, so we promised her an afternoon of jumping and egg dying at home instead. Not a single complaint from this sweet girl...

We dyed our eggs while Ross napped (eggs+dye+Ross=no thanks) and Bridget dipped each and every one of them and patiently waited for them to brighten up. It was a beautiful bowl of eggs and it will make for an even better bowl of egg salad this week!

We decorated our bunny cake later that day and then the only thing left to do was go to bed to wait for the bunny. Bridget is starting to ask questions like, "How will he get in our house?" and "Does he know I like chocolate?" I assured that he knows exactly what candy she likes AND what Mommy and Daddy like too!

I stuffed and restuffed their baskets until they looked perfect and set them out on the kitchen table where Bridget instructed me to leave them for the bunny.

She ripped through her basket in record time while Ross watched in confused excitement. We hosted brunch at our house with Grandma and Papa later that day. They, of course, had more goodies for them and helped out with our own egg hunt. Last year I had visions of both kids running around for the eggs, but Ross is still not walking. He was perfectly content though to be plopped in the grass while clutching onto one lone pink egg.

His one egg

She was most interested the eggs that held quarters!

Ross needed to let loose a little by the end of the day!

With Easter behind us, it is time to start thinking about summer. It's going to be a great one and we're ready!

Little Things, Big Smiles

It's all about the little things at the moment. The funny little things they say and do are what adds up to one big happy life for us. When we were gone on our trip and away from the kids for 6 days, it was those little things I missed the most. Since getting back, my camera has been snapping away at those sweet little things that make up our everyday moments that I never want to forget...

Family walks after dinner

Our first Easter Egg Hunt for our friend Carter's birthday

Games of Peek-A-Boo

Hula Hooping...she's getting really good! She got the hula hoop almost a year ago as a potty training reward. At only 2 1/2 she obviously had no idea how to hula hoop back then. But now? She's pretty darn good.

Baby Feet...I peek in on the kids every night before I go to bed. One night I found Ross like this. Comfy and cozy, with both legs hanging out of the crib rails!

Freckles & Curls...she'll hate them both someday, but I will always love them!

Fuzzy hair that stands straight up...The good news is that he is finally getting some hair. The bad news is that it's at the in-between growing out stage and stands straight up. Each night at bedtime I hold him and sing to him before laying him in his crib and those little fuzzy hairs tickle my chin.

Being a big girl listening to story on CD.

The happy face...he now has eyebrows and arms. And still a butt. She never forgets to draw the butt.

The picture wall. Love it.

Shirtless baby boys with roly poly tummies.

Little things, big BIG smiles!

Adventures in Rome

Yep, Rome. As in Italy. Todd's company, Gartner, offers it's employees a chance each year to make its Winner's Circle trip. They work the entire year with one goal in mind...make Winner's Circle! Each year the location is someplace different and fabulous-the kind of place Todd and I would probably never visit on our own. This is our 3rd Winner's Circle trip in a row and they are truly amazing each and every time. The real praise belongs to Todd, though, who works so hard for Gartner. Those long days at the office really pay off when your being whisked away to Rome.

We only had about 4 days in Rome, but we made our way through the city and saw (and ate!) so much.

The Must-Sees:

The Colosseum

Rome's most famous site and we learned it's the world's 2nd most famous site after the Eiffel Tower

A view from the inside

Ancient Rome

St. Peter's Basilica

The Food

The pictures of the food speak for themselves...delish!

The gelato was amazing and we ate it every single day. The toughest part was deciding which flavor to have. It really is better than ice cream!

Fun Nights Out

Each night Gartner hosted an amazing dinner event somewhere throughout the city. The best night of all was the Angels & Demons dinner held at Villa Minai. It's a huge palace on top of the city with gorgeous views. Inside the palace, each room was bustling with entertainment, food and drinks. On the lawn outside were fire pits, leather couches and performers. The night ended with a fireworks show over the city view.

Out and About

We had a few hours each day before or after a tour, that we were on our own to explore the city. In between getting turned around on the confusing streets of Rome, we did come across lots of other places and sites that may not be as well known, but made for some beautiful pictures.

The Spanish Steps

If I had a dollar for every statue we saw...

You would have thought we would have had the American flag tattooed to our foreheads...All the vendors and waiters and shop owners always spoke to us in English, even before we spoke first.

I don't know...maybe the Diet Coke, tour book or the big camera strapped around my neck gave me away...

The trip was amazing, but so was coming home to the kids. The trip couldn't have gone so smooth if we didn't have our parents to keep the kids. They were in perfect hands and we were able to call or Skype with them everyday.

We'll be staying put for awhile, but Todd is already off to great start for next year's Winner Circle...Maui!!