It's the little things.

We reopened our sandbox again this spring/summer (it feels like we missed spring since winter was so long and this weekend was over 100 degrees!) and it's been so fun! All the girls love it. It's especially fun because it's Lucy and Ellory's first time playing in it- they are the perfect height/age for it. I know it will be used a lot this summer! And how cute are their hats?! It's these moments in the little things that I want to store away and remember forever.

What a fun morning! Also, to make mom life easier, I purposely just put them in a onesie because I knew they would get dirty and need to be changed after, and I also moved it into the shade so I didn't have to put sunscreen on. They were busy with it for a full half hour- wins all around!

(We have the Step 2 Naturally Playful Sand Table and I love it. We've had it for 3 summers now and it's still in good condition. I love having a standing table vs. one on the ground because then they don't get as dirty because they aren't sitting in it, and it keeps animals out too. It has a nice lid too that has elastic ties to hold it down, and it's never blown off during a storm or anything.)

Lucy and Ellory- Fifteen Months.

15 months is here! What a fun and busy season this is. Lucy and Ellory are growing and changing so much. Watching them learn new things is the best! Thankful for such enjoyable, joyful babies!

Stats/Doctor visits: Glad for a healthy month with no sickness or doctor visits other than their 15 month wellness check. Lucy was 20 lbs 7 oz (39%), 30.75” (58%), and head circumference 18.5” (84%). Ellory was 22 lbs 10 oz (70%), 30.67” (55%), and head circumference 18.5" (84%).

Teeth: Ellory got her bottom right first molar on 4/23 (11^th tooth), and her bottom left first molar on 4/26 (12^th tooth). Lucy got her top left canine on 4/23 (13^th tooth), her bottom left canine on 4/25 (14^th tooth), her top right canine on 5/2 (15^th tooth), and her bottom right canine on 5/21 (16^th tooth).

Feeding: I think both Lucy and Ellory are better eaters than Norah was/is; we have commented this month on how well they eat and how much they eat! I have noticed a real difference in our food intake with having five solid food eaters now. Glad for good eaters! Lucy likes basically everything and I can't think of a food she doesn't like. Ellory is more selective, and she will spit things out if you try to make her eat something she doesn't want. Favorites for both are noodles, crackers, cheese, and all fruit (except Ellory doesn't like bananas!). They usually have cheerios and yogurt or a puree for breakfast (basically for my sanity so I don't have to clean up another mess, but Ellory has decided recently that purees are beyond her and she just wants solids, but she does love vanilla yogurt.) Lucy usually eats a bit more, but Ellory must be going through a growth spurt or something because she has been eating more recently.

Diapers/Clothes: Wearing size 3 diapers during the day and 4 at night, and wearing 12 month clothes, but will switch to 18 month soon.

Sleeping: Sleep is a beautiful thing! Both girls are great sleepers. A big change in sleep this month is that a week before 15 months they cut out their second nap. For over a month, Ellory hadn't been sleeping during it, and Lucy started taking longer to fall asleep at night because she did sleep, so they both seemed ready to cut it out and it has gone well. They go to bed a bit earlier now (though we are still a late night family), so they go to bed about 9:15-9:30 and are up between 9-9:30, and they take a good afternoon nap from about 1:30-4. We are slowly pushing bedtime a bit earlier (and nap a bit earlier), to get ready for a school schedule in the fall for Norah.

Words: Lucy's favorite word is dada, and she is also saying mama more too. She has said a few other words occasionally, but not consistently, like thank you, bye bye, and cracker. Lucy makes many baby noises though and loves to babble! Ellory's words are exploding! She says dada, mama, Norah, nose, eyes, mouth, truck, dog, more, cracker, bath, bye bye, night night (sounds like nye-nye), baby, outside, shoes, uh-oh, no no (thankfully just in copying when she hears it and not in defiance yet!), and my newest favorite is love you! She says many other words after you say them, but doesn't say them consistently on her own.

Developments: Both girls love to be outside and look out our front door window. Ellory was attached to my monkey beanie baby this month and would make the monkey noise. Ellory loves to collect/examine rocks outside. Both girls love being chased. They are starting to play more little games like peekaboo, pat-a-cake, so big, etc. Ellory can now point to and say nose, eyes, mouth, and belly button, and recently learned to stick her tongue out. Lucy is still our resident monkey and loves to climb on anything and everything. She is always on the move! She sometimes acts like she is a big kid stuck in a tiny body, because she'll walk right up to big kids at the park acting like she's ready to play! Ellory loves to look at books, specifically touch and feel or lift the flap books. Lucy is a major daddy's girl and loves to be by him and gets so excited when he comes home. Lucy loves to clean up and clap for herself, though she spends more time clapping for herself than cleaning! I think Lucy's love language is physical touch, even though she loves to climb around and be on the go, she is also a big cuddle bug too. Ellory's love language is words of affirmation, she loves to be talked to, have conversations, and be praised. They are starting to follow simple directions, like get your shoes, let's go outside, bath time, etc. They are becoming more intentional in play, like trying to stack blocks or put things together. They are starting to pretend play too, like putting a play phone to their ear or stirring pots in the kitchen (that's Lucy's favorite, and she loves to give you pretend bites). Ellory still doesn't love strangers, but is warming up some and both girls did really well in the nursery last week! They are remembering family members more and taking less time to warm up to them when they see them. Both girls still suck their right thumb.

Favorites: Both girls really love baby dolls, taking baths, eating (they sit really well in their high chairs), exploring in the kitchen cupboards or dishwasher/fridge, and being outside. They both like to go downstairs with Kley, and have recently discovered the trampoline and like to jump on it. They tried coloring this month and liked that. Ellory loves her milk and drinks more than Lucy. Ellory loves to play peekaboo, both with her hands on her face, or finding and baby blanket or dish towel and putting that over her head. She also loves any and all dogs and walks up to them without fear. She loves reading books dancing. Lucy loves moving and climbing, whether that's on the stool in the bathroom or Norah's room, the little table, piano bench, basement stairs, whatever she can find- she's quite strong for her tiny body! They have already learned the sound of the snack jars being opened in the kitchen, and love to come running for a goldfish or animal cracker whenever they can get one.

Lucy and Ellory, this was such a fun month, as you learned a lot. Being your parents is such a blessing! We love you so much!

Lucy's hair is getting longer and crazier!

And then we had to stop because Ellory was getting mad I wasn't giving her the camera.

Tulip Festival 2018.

We had a great time at Tulip Festival this year! It's so fun that Norah is old enough to remember it from last year and look forward to it. She was excited for the rides for weeks! Tulip Festival happens every May in our town, where we celebrate our Dutch heritage with lots of fun activities like Dutch dancing, parades, Dutch costumes, rides, food stands, etc. 

One of my favorite parts is taking pictures by the tulips! My girls definitely do not agree, but they are so fun to have.

Getting all your kids to look, let alone smile, for a picture is quite the task!

So thankful for good weather and being outside after a long winter!

Ellory saw the carousel and wanted on!

We walked downtown before it officially started and watched them set up the rides, and they were mesmerized watching!

Ride night! Norah was so thrilled. Lucy had a fever that night, so her and Ellory stayed with grandparents. We missed them, but it was really fun to have special time with Norah on the rides, especially since Lucy and Ellory couldn't do many rides anyways.

The giant slide is one of her favorites!

Riding the motorcycles.

Norah was so brave and rode so many rides. She even rode the two roller coasters they had and enjoyed them. Apparently the motorcycles didn't go as fast as the roller coasters, so she just sucked her thumb. Ha.

It was so fun to watch Norah enjoy the rides!

Watching the parade in their super cute chairs! My friend, Stephanie, gave them to them for their first birthdays. Lucy and Ellory sat in them so well!

Seeing their faces during the parade was so fun! They all did so well. Norah loved the marching band and was jumping up and down when they came by and dancing. So cute!

We sat with our friends and Norah was so excited to watch with Josie and Savannah.

Loving the inflatables!

So happy we got a good family picture! So thankful to be a wife and mother.

My parents came for the weekend too, so it was fun to share the festivities with grandpa and grandma!

Brett and Elizabeth (Kley's sister) were here for the weekend also, so it was fun to catch some parades with them too!

Norah really loved the matching band!

Ellory sat so nice with my mom.

Family trip on the carousel! Norah thought we had to sit on the benches since Lucy and Ellory were with us. They loved it!

Norah rode the giant slide with grandpa and had the fastest ride ever! They flew down!

Check out Tulip Festivals from 2015, 2016, and 2017. So fun to look back on the growth over the years!