Olivia Turns 3

Well, I don't have to tell you all that it feels like yesterday that I was walking out of Women and Infants' Hospital with a brand new baby in my arms -- not knowing what was in store for Tony and I. And now it's been three years of learning and growing together and I still never know what's in store! Olivia definitely likes to keep us on our toes, challenging us to be even more creative than we thought possible : ) She's a really little girl now, and she never lets us forget it! ("I can do it by myself!")

She is: taking ballet lessons; going to nursery school 4 mornings a week; listening to (and watching) Swan Lake and the Nutcracker A LOT; talking; learning and using her alphabet; writing her name; talking; climbing on the swing set and sitting on the "big girl swing"; talking; running and jumping well; walking on every "balance beam" she can find; dressing up;  --- did I mention talking? That girl was an early talker and definitely hasn't stopped since! She is always asking questions, making up her own stories or just chatting with me able what's on her mind -- "I was just thinking about bears and dinosaurs and bears."

Here are some pics from her party - thanks to everyone who was able to celebrate with us - and to those far away, you were there in spirit : )

The birthday girl.

Swinging with her buddy Peter Stoepker (Jeremy & Tanveer's son)

Getting sung to  -- with her buddy Parker at her side.

The cake -- complete with custom Angelina Ballerina topper : )

Surprise!

What a great party!

What's new with Juliette

As you can imagine a lot has changed since I lasted posted about our sweet baby Juliette. She is now 10 months old: crawling and pulling up, clapping, laughing at her sister, babbling and eating real food like the rest of us. Here are a bunch of photos to try and sum it all up.

MONTH 1

Juliette's first bath.

Jujubee helps pick her first Christmas tree at only 1 month old!

Snuggling with her Daddy and big Sis.

MONTH 2

Starting to show us her sweet little smile.

MONTH 3

Can't get enough of that smile.

MONTH 4

Posing on her baby gym where she spent lots of time playing with all those dangling toys.

She's found it! Her favorite soother - her thumb!

MONTH 5

She found her toes!

And started bathing with her big sis.

MONTH 6

Sitting up and snuggling with big sister before bedtime.

At 6 months it was finally time to try some solid food. Hmmmm... Carrots!

MONTH 7

Just like Olivia,  Juliette quickly figured out that she LOVES drinking from a cup!

MONTH 8

At 8 months, it was time for her first flight. Juliette finally got to meet her great
Grandparents and Great Aunts and Uncle. We had a great time visiting and enjoying the Atlanta Zoo.

This months also brought a visit from some of her cousins from the south.
Here she is with some of her girl cousins. (from left: Megan with Juliette, Lila, Olivia and Maya)

MONTH 9

Finally able to sit up on her own, Juliette's world really
started to look different.

Sitting was quickly followed by crawling -
and then Mommy & Daddy's world started changing too!

Juliette has really shown an interest in music and loves
banging out a tune on her xylophone.

MONTH 10

Crawling around on a beautiful fall day.

Juliette will be forever remembered as the "Botacelli Baby" (appropriately named by Honey).
She loves donning this pose whenever she needs a little break from crawling.  A recent addition has been
this leg grab that often includes some upward leg kicks : )

We're back in business!

So after I posted the birth announcement for our sweet little Juliette, Blogger informed me that I had no more room for images (without having to pay them for more server space - boo!). I was unsure what to do to keep you all up to date without losing my archived posts to make room for new images. Well, it's take me 10 months, but the solution finally dawned on me (I won't bore you with the details), so we're back in action! Yea!  So the following 2 posts will be quick overviews of what's been going on with our little girls.

Introducing...Juliette Noelle!

We are so happy to announce the arrival of our second daughter, Juliette Noelle Gemignani. Born on November 9th at 3:12am, she weighed in at 7lbs 6oz and 20 inches long. And while the wait was trying at times (she was 10 days late, according to my due date), it was well worth the wait! Here are some photos from her first days.

Snuggled on Mama.

Tiny feet.

With Daddy.

Finally, a look at those eyes... and that tongue!

Me and my girls.

Heading home!

At home with her big sis, Olivia.

Relaxin'

Sooooo sleepy.

Fall Fun

Yes, this is yet another quick photographic catch-up of our fun this fall. Enjoy!

Her latest hobby - collecting rocks in her pockets.... though not always in the Elton John shades.

Using the dehydrator to make dried apples from the ones we picked at the orchard.

Applauding her good job! (Note the outfit: cat pajamas with apron
and flip-flops -- the height of sophistication.

Tony works on stacking the wood for the woodstove.

Olivia helped this year in my place : )

Playing IN her new toy box (built for her birthday by Uncle Jon), while wearing her new winter hat
from GG (Great Grandma Holthusen).

Olivia Turns 2!

How fast the years are flying by! Our little girl in now a bonafide 2 years old. Complete with family, friends and cupcakes, Olivia celebrated in style. She even got her own birthday fireworks display courtesy of Uncle Jon : )  Thanks to all who spoiled her with love and gifts!

Playing in the hammock with cousins Megan and Miles.

More hammock snuggling with Meg.

Lighting her ballerina cupcake...

Sizing up her prey....

Digging in! Yum! (Olivia asked for cupcakes each day for the next week!)

Apple Picking

We did manage to squeeze in a quick trip to the local orchard this fall. Poverty Lane Orchards proved to be a lovely local spot for some apple pickin' fun.