My wonderful Romelie

My little girl is 5 years old today!  Five years old!

This is the time of year I put together a photo book to share with the grandparents that shows off the last year of the girls' lives (sorry to publicly spoil the Christmas gift surprise, but I think after 4 years in a row you probably could guess that it's coming).  I was looking through last year's book to try to mimic the format as much as possible, and I was just blown away at how much older Romelie seems.  True, she still acts like she did when she was 3 occasionally, but she also has given us glimpses of what she might be like at age 7 or 8 (wanting to help more around the house, using polite words - sometimes - without needing reminders, etc.) and it's pretty awesome.

Anyway, Romelie...this video is for you.

(Happy birthday, baby.  Love you.)

May thru November

I promised pictures from May onward once I got a cable for my camera.  I have a cable, so here goes!

Romelie took swimming lessons in the Spring.   Three kids, one instructor.  Best swimming lessons ever.

We took a picture of Romelie on this "ride" at Chuck E Cheese when she was tiny, so I couldn't resist getting the "big kid" version.

Cori had fun at Chuck E Cheese, too.  I love this picture cause it looks like she's in some sort of kid zoo.

This is what my kids do with sidewalk chalk.  Clearly the word "sidewalk" is just a suggestion.

Cori's much more physical than Romelie was at this age.  This shelf is her jungle gym.

Both of the kids got a face rash after dinner one night in May.  Apparently they share the same sensitive skin issues.

We tried to get a nice family photo; this was the best one (the ones with me feature crying kids).

Maryland!  We spent a week visiting Grandmommy in June which was an absolute blast.

The girls spent lots of quality time with Grandmommy playing outside...

...and Chason and I got lots of grown up time in D.C.  Yeah, Hubble 3-D.

As you can see, I have some seriously styin' kids.

Grandmommy's birthday!  We ate way too much delicious food....

...then snuggled in for the night.  Thanks for such a great trip, Diane and Roy!

Back in MN...we visited our local community carnival in August and won a cake.  I know, you're totally jealous.

Have I mentioned that Cori is in love with dolls?  She always has to have her blanket and at least one doll with her everywhere she goes.  It's pretty cute, actually, and illustrates another difference between her and Romelie who never had any sort of "lovey."

Labor Day weekend!  We visited Grandmommy at her new pet boarding facility in Park Rapids...

...then headed over to Grandpa's cabin for some outdoor sports and games.

Cori has an awesome pout.  Also, her hair and outfit in this picture make it one of my favorites.

We still have our membership at the MN Zoo.  Check out the penguins!

Halloween time!  We visited Grandmommy and spent a few hours at a pumpkin corn maze festival place.  I don't know what you call it, but it was fun.

Corn kernel crawl.  Ah, small town MN, you're adorable.

Romelie carved a pumpkin this year, but still insisted on painting it afterwards.

Cori painted her small pumpkin, too

And aww...look how adorable they are!  In case it's not obvious, they are Blue and Periwinkle from Blue's Clues.  I wonder how many years I can dress them in similarly themed costumes before they start to protest?

Okay, kids, there's the last six months.  I know these photos only tell a small piece of the story of our lives, but hopefully I will be able to get back to sharing the little details soon.  In the meantime, here's a knock knock joke, courtesy of Romelie:

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Strawberry.
Strawberry who?
Knock knock.

Who's there?

Strawberry.

Strawberry who?

Knock knock.

Who's there?

Strawberry.

Strawberry who?

Knock knock.

Who's there?

Blueberry.

Blueberry who?

Blueberry aren't you glad I didn't say strawberry again?

Hahahahahaha!  You're welcome.

My beautiful Coraline

Clearly I have done a terrible job with the blog in the last year.  I have posted three times in 2012, and it's November.

I feel bad because we have wonderful family and friends who don't get to see the girls as often as I know they would like, and without regular updates they may feel like they're missing some important moments.

I feel bad because I find time to do other things like read and watch TV but don't seem to make time to update the blog, and that feels like a bad combination of lazy and selfish.

Mostly, though, I feel bad because of Cori.  I had always intended to share this blog with the girls when they're older so they can read all of the cute stories, trying moments, and childhood accomplishments that they no longer remember and go "awww..."  Romelie will have that opportunity.  Cori will be like, "What the hell, mama?  Where are my stories?"

Coraline May...my beautiful, wonderful, charming, hilarious, strong-willed girl...happy 2nd birthday (yesterday).  I love you so much, and for you, I am determined to get back to updating this blog on a regular basis.

Family and friends, if you are still reading, that's just bonus.  :)

Here's as up-to-date as it gets:  a couple of videos of Cori taken just this morning.

There you go, Spanish learners.  "Hello" in Spanish is clearly "Ardr."  Speaking of my brilliant daughter, here is another video of her showing off her phone skills, her letters, and her numbers.

Hey...she just turned 2.  Whaddya want from her?  Love you, baby!