Week 3

I lost 4 pounds this week! I'm very happy about that! I've lost a total of 10 lbs. so far. I'm still able to keep the diet plan fairly easily. I did miss one day of exercises because I wasn't able to do it in the morning and then I wasn't feeling well later in the day.

Some new discoveries this week:

* After feeling kind of down on Monday I decided to try on some Capri pants - that I haven't been able to wear the last two summers. I figured it would either make me feel better or worse. But they fit and I was so excited! That was confirmation that I'm having  more success than the scale is showing.

* I have to do a warm up exercise every day that puts a lot of pressure on my hips. The first week it was very painful for me. It was piercing pain, kind of like when you have a bruise and you get hit right in that spot. The second week it was much less painful. This week there was no pain at all during that exercise!

* The girls are giving me more space when I exercise. They seem to have caught on that Mommy is not available to get them stuff and it's best not to climb all over me when I'm exercising.

* I HATE jumping jacks. And of course they are in every single warm-up. Maybe I'll learn to appreciate them more.

* My back has started hurting again this week which is disappointing. It's been pretty bad actually, so hopefully that goes away again soon!

I have family here visiting this week, so I'm hoping it won't be too hard to keep up with the routine. (I very much do not like exercising in front of people - especially when I'm not very good at it yet and I look pretty bad in my attempts.) I'm going to try my best to keep on track this week. Wish me luck!

My Girls

 I am just loving the stages my girls are in. I pretty much just want to freeze time and have them stay 2 and 4 forever! They are becoming so independent and yet are still so cute and innocent. I just want to bottle up all of this cuteness! They have both been very pleasant lately, and for the most part get along so well. They have been so well behaved and obedient also. It makes me sad knowing that they won't stay this way for long.

 Aubrey's attempt at kissing Brooke while looking at the camera!

Brooke is just overflowing with personality these days. She hops around singing and talking all day. She generally has a little skip or jump to her step. She is just a happy and sweet little thing.

This evening Aubrey was giving her some loves and Brooke said, "Sissy giving me a hug and a kiss. She loves me. I love you Sis." Then Aubrey responded with an "I love you" back. It was so sweet. She proceeded to tell Aubrey a few more times tonight that she loved her.

  

Brooke wet all over me while I changed her diaper a few days ago. I guess that's what I get for changing her while she was standing up. I hurried and held her diaper over her to protect the floor. As she was going she says, "I need to go potty Mommy." (Yeah I'm aware of that Brooke). As soon as she was done she looks at me annoyed and says, "You need to change my diaper mom." Oh those 2 year olds!

 She loves to count and can count to 10. (although she frequently leaves out either the 2 or 3)

Brooke can cleans up her room all by herself. And she'll do it upon my first request and I don't even have to stay and watch. It is the most fabulous thing in the world!

She has been working on dressing herself. She can get her pants on, but usually has trouble getting them past her diaper on her backside. And of course, she doesn't want me to help. Sometimes she runs around for a while with them under her diaper before I can sneak them up. She can get her shirts over her head and in one arm. The other arm is a little trouble for her.

She can stand up for herself. Aubrey likes to answer for her. The other day I asked Brooke a question and Aubrey started to answer. Brooke said very firmly, "No sissy let me talk." I had to suppress a giggle with that one.

I had to do her hair with curls again this week, 'cause I loved them so much last week. Look at those adorable curls!

They finished their first week of Survival Swimming this week. Brooke cried a lot on the 2nd and 3rd lesson. On our way to the 4th lesson Brooke said, "I be happy at swim class now." And she was. Not a single tear! Aubrey was so proud of her! She kept saying to me, "Brooke's not even crying today."

Here she is floating. The teacher is just holding her on her head.

Diving for rings.

More floating - she loves to float!

Going all the way under the water!

Brooke loves to dress up. She is so happy that she can put her tutu on all by herself. She also likes to carry around bags that she has filled with books. Here she is sporting her fire hat.

Aubrey has been just a doll lately. She has toned down so much when it comes to emotional/stubborn outbursts. (Thank goodness!) She keeps her room clean, helps with all sorts of chores, keeps her sister entertained, is very concerned with doing what it right and is still very creative and down right hilarious! I am just loving my 4 year old Aubrey!

I was talking to Brooke about obeying me the other day and Aubrey piped in, "You want to do what's right because someday you'll see Jesus and you'll want to tell him that you try to do what's right."

 She is such a little mommy with her sister. Most of the time she is gentle with her. She talks to her with a Mommy voice and calls Brooke "cutie". She'll say things like, "Oh cutie are you OK?" It's so sweet.

Tonight they were having left over Mac n' Cheese with hot dogs. Brooke loves the hot dogs the best and there were only a few left in the bowl. I saw her put all of the hot dogs on one plate and the other didn't have any. Then she handed me the plate with the hot dogs and said, "This is for Brooke because she really loves hot dogs." That just made my heart melt. I'm so happy that she is learning concern and sacrifice for others.

She is already starting to become self-conscious. I know that it's a natural progression, but I am sad to see it starting already. I hope to build confident, capable young ladies - so hopefully we can work through this.

She is doing so good in Survival Swimming.

Here she is learning to swim to the stairs.

I loved this picture because she is looking right up at her teacher and listening to what she is telling her.

On her third lesson she started being able to float without the teacher holding on at all.

Way to go Aubrey!

Here she is taking a ride on the duck boat, then she jumps off and swims to the teacher.

I'm so excited to see how the girls progress in their swimming this week.

I had a dentist appointment last week, so the girls got to eat lunch with their daddy at his office. They were so excited to get to go to work with Daddy!

Tumbling Tots

 This week Brooke started her Tumbling Tots class. I figured after sitting so good and watching Aubrey in her dance class all last year, she deserved a class of her own. Plus, I hadn't been able to do a Mommy and Me type class with Brooke yet and since Aubrey is big enough to sit and watch now I wanted to take the opportunity to do something fun with her.

She had such a fun time and was so cute trying out all of the equipment.

 We had free time at the beginning and the teacher said Aubrey could play too. She was thrilled!

What a cute little monkey!

Trying out some tricks on the bar.

 She did it! (Next she was going to try and let go with her hands but then chickened out!)

What a cutie pants! I can't remember what she was telling me - but I'm sure it was very important!

Brooke was really good at the balance beam! I think she was the only one who could do it without me holding her hand.

I found these next two pictures on my camera when I uploaded them. Aubrey had taken them while she was sitting and watching. This was during stretching time. I was so impressed with how well Brooke was able to follow the instructions for the stretches.

 

 Even though this one is really blurry I had to put it on because Aubrey told me when I found the picture, "I thought Brookie looked really cute doing that so I took a picture. Are you glad that I took the picture?" What a little sweatheart she is!

Music time!

They marched all around the room shaking the bells and maraca!

It was such a cute little class and I know Brooke felt so special having her own class. She kept saying as we were walking to her class and then as we were leaving, "That's my Tumbling class." I love doing this kind of thing with my girls. I'm so glad that I can have a Mommy and Me tumbling class with my Brookie!

Father's Day

 A few days before Father's Day I had the girls make a little something for their Dad. They both love making presents for their Daddy. There's just something about creating something for somebody you love!

Aubrey made a soda can cozy for Dad. (Gotta love her outfit!)

Brookie decorated a peanut jar for Daddy (except we filled it with cashews instead because that's Daddy's favorite nut.)

She had picked out the monster stickers at the store for her project.

 

That night when Jeff came home Brooke was so excited to give him her present. She said to me, "I want to tell Daddy Happy Father's Day." I told her she could. Then she said, "Where's my peanut jar?" I had to explain that it was still a few more days until Father's day when she would give him her present. I love to see them so excited to give things to other people!

 For Father's Day breakfast I tried to make a healthy alternative to our normal celebration breakfast. I made Oatmeal Egg white pancakes (the recipe was included with my fitness program.) and turkey bacon.

Me and the girls thought the pancakes were really yummy. Jeff didn't love them though.

On a side note, I had Brooke sleep in sponge curlers for the first time and her hair turned out adorable!

Then we rushed off to church so Aubrey could be there in time to participate in the Father's Day musical number. It was a 3 verse song that Aubrey worked very hard at learning. She had the 1st and 3rd verse down perfectly and just needed a little help with the 2nd verse.

As soon as we got home from church the girls were super excited to give their Daddy his presents. Of course, they had to do the opening for him!

Brooke showing Daddy the picture she drew for him.

 

Happy to finally give him his peanut jar.

Father's day kisses too!

Aubrey's turn to open her present for Daddy!

Reading Daddy the letter she wrote him.

More kisses.

 I also took the girls to a couple stores to pick out some presents for him. At the first store Aubrey searched high and low for a certain kind of chip. I didn't know what kind she was looking for, all she could describe them as were, "I want to get Daddy's favorite chips. The ones I shared with him on his bed." I'm pretty sure she's shared several different kinds of chips with him. Since she couldn't find them at that store I took her to another one. I was looking for something else when I heard Aubrey excitedly saying, "I found them, I found them. Here's Daddy's favorite chips that I've been looking for!"

Here's Daddy getting his favorite cheese chips (according to Aubrey) and of course the girls were plenty willing to share some with him!

 

Daddy with his darlings.

 

After lunch we all had a nap - pure heaven!

For dinner I made wheat bread and a root vegetable stew that came with my meal plan. It was pretty good - but I like my usual stew better. And Jeff used his cozy from Aubrey with his dinner.

It was a very nice and relaxing Father's day.

Survival Swim Lessons

 Aubrey & Brooke started Survival Swim lessons today.

They are different then the traditional lessons. They teach the children how to survive if they have fallen into the water. I had heard, years before the girls were born, that the best way to protect your child from drowning is to teach them how to swim. This is the aim of this program. They even start with babies as young as 6 months old and can teach them what to do in the water to protect themselves from drowning.

Since we spend the bulk of our Summer in the pool, I felt like the girls needed to have the protection taught in this class.

I had Aubrey go first because Brooke wants to do EVERYthing that her sister does. 

Aubrey did fantastic. She wasn't afraid at all and did everything her teacher asked of her! Here she is learning how to float on her back. (She also did this farther out in the water with her teacher just holding her head - but my battery was dying so I didn't get a picture.)

 Here she is diving for rings.

I was worried that Brooke would not be happy to go to a stranger. But, my plan of having Aubrey go first worked perfectly. While we watched Aubrey, Brooke cheered along with me and was really excited for her turn. She asked several times, "When is it my turn?"

When it was her turn she got right in the water and straight to her teacher with no problem!

She did great at the first. Here she is getting rings.

She also did awesome with floating on her back!

But,after her teacher put her all the way under the water she was not happy! I expected some tears from her and she actually did much better than I thought. So I counted their first lesson as a huge success! I'm hoping Brooke won't be too resistant for their lesson tomorrow. I know Aubrey is excited to learn some new tricks!