Finally Fantastic Four!

What a week! The girls turned 4 on Wednesday and they have been on cloud 9 all week! They love all the calls, cards, and presents they have received from their amazing grandparents! These girls are so lucky to have such amazing family!

Just before their birthday, Grandma Natty came up for the weekend and they got lots of snuggle time in with her! Unfortunately Parker had a bad cold so we didn't do a lot, but I think those are sometimes the best weekends!

On their birthday Nick and I took them to the Mall of America to have a spoil day! Fortunately their birthday was on a Wednesday so there was no one at the mall! We got their early and took them on a bunch of rides! Their favorite was the Big Rigs...they looked like Semi-Trucks! Parker thought it was soo cool because she had another little girl about her age sit next to her! She said she was her best friend! I love how at this age they aren't afraid of new people and are so accepting of everyone!

After going on rides we had lunch, and they got to pick out whatever they wanted to eat! Bonus was we even went and got ice cream for dessert afterwards! We went shopping and ran through the halls of the mall! It was a great time!

That night we came home and had dinner and made cupcakes! I got cute Princess candy cupcake toppers that they got to decorate them with! They used all the sprinkles I had bought on just 2 cupcakes! But they had a blast! Happy Birthday sweeties!

 

Finally a little snow!

Well these last couple of months have been a crazy few! In November Nick accepted a new position in Apple Valley MN, as the 2nd Assistant General Manager! He started on Nov 28th, which meant he had to move up to the cities while the girls and I got the house in Harrisburg ready for the Market! We listed Nov 28th, and fully moved out of that house as of Dec 17th. We have yet to sell the house but hope we figure it out soon! In the mean time we have all moved into a great 3 bedroom 3 bath 2 story townhouse in Farmingtom MN. The girls absolutly love it! They have their own playroom/loft right outside of their bedroom so they can play as much as they want!

So far the winter has been incredibly mild, which for us was a huge blessing since the girls and I have been driving back and forth between Sioux Falls and Farmington about every week! Bummer part is we have barely received any snow! The girls have been aching to put on the snow gear and get out and play in the snow! Today was finally the day! We got less then an inch, and it was absolutely freezing outside, but we did it! We would play for about 10 mins, go inside and sit by the fireplace for 10 mins, and then brave the cold again!

The girls are getting very indepentant now...not that they weren't before, but it has been taken to a whole new level since they are almost 4! We have to look at putting a lock on our refridgerator because the townhouse has a standard fridge with the fridge on the bottom...which means the girls can reach everything! Yesterday while I took a shower Parker got into the fridge and ate over 1/4 lb of cheese slices I had just bought from the deli! They love getting dressed themselves, and for now actually enjoy picking up after themselves! We'll see how long that lasts! We took them in for their 4 yr appointment early since I wanted to get it in with our regular doctor and found that Parker is 41 inches tall and 39lbs, while Kinsley is 38.5 inches tall and 27lbs!

As far as Nick and I, he is loving his new position at Menards! He enjoys the people he works with and is actually very excited for the new prospects and promotions he has opened himself up for! We hope that within 18-24 months he will be promoting again, and then within 18-24 month after that finalizing his promotions with his own store! Within those promotions we will again be moving so we are currently just looking at renting until the final move, which then we will build or buy our forever home!

For me, I am still doing Celebrating Home on the side, but I have cut back due to the distance and the fact that we don't have the same family dynamic up here that allowed me to work more and not worry about the girls having to get a babysitter. Luckily with Nick's promotion it isn't a large concern that I am working less! I am looking at other options though such as getting my personal training certification...but who knows!

Well time to start lunch and then 'school' for the girls!
Loves and Squeezes
The Lannings

Where does time go!

I have said this before, but where has our time gone? My last post was July of 2010...What!?! I am on the computer daily, why not more? Well that is going to change!

Here are some updates:
Kinsley is 38 inches tall and weighs 24lbs!
Parker is 40.5 inches tall and weighs 37lbs!

Both girls started preschool this fall and are loving it! Its amazing to see how much they are learning in just a few hrs every Tuesday and Thursday! They are in the Humpty Dumpty class at Central Babtist in Sioux Falls, which is an amazing pre-school! They have lots of new little friends including Kinsley's friend Gracie and Parker's friend Avalon.

Both girls are very creative and have imaginatons that just won't stop! They love to play 'kitchen' and make meals for eachother and Nick and myself. They also love to play 'mommy', where one of them is the mommy and the other is the baby! Its just a hoot watching them play together. I feel very lucky to have two little girls that love to play together!

Last week we just updated their bedroom so now they each have twin sized beds instead of toddler beds! They think that this is probably the coolest thing so far! They helped me pick out the bedding, Kinsley has purple and Parker has pink of course! They are very specific about their colors, even when it comes to their plates and sippie cups! It just cracks me up! We have a TV in their room that is just for movies and the girls love their movies! We have a wide variety...67 to be exact! They will watch one over and over and over though before they move on to another! Right now our two favorites are Tangled and Happy Feet!

They are definetly becoming their own little person more and more each day! Each of them has certian quirks and moods that we have come to recognize...and sometimes dread! They have certain things that they just love to eat, and they are very specific about it! Kinsley loves butter sandwiches with no crust and squished. Parker is a little less picky when it comes to food but she has a strong favorite...yogurt! She just loves it! She is big enough now that she can get into the fridge, open the drawer, and pick out her own!

Well must go for now, but there will be more very soon!

Way to Long!

Wow has time flown by! I am sorry that we have not posted more! The girls are getting so big and very active, so thus our days are packed full! Here are some updates:

As for me on May 3rd I left my full time job as Citibank to stay home with the girls and move forward as a Designer for Celebrating Home. We found that it was more budget friendly to have me stay home with the girls instead of having them in daycare. So now the girls and I spend a lot more time together! Things are going very well with this new transition! If you want to take a look at my new adventure you can check it out at www.celebratinghome.com/sites/kaseylanning which has an online catalog!

As for Nick, he is still at Menards as the Hardware Department Manager! He does excellent with this job! As a side job/hobby he has started making Bean Bag Toss boards that he is selling! It is truly amazing to watch him make these boards from scratch and then custom paint them for people! You can check them out at http://sodakcustomboards.blogspot.com/! He is just getting started but already has 5 orders to fill! Yay!

Now for the part that everyone has been waiting for...the girls!

Kinsley is still our little peanut! At 29 mons she is still only 20lbs! She is a little mini Nick! She loves her movies (especially Shrek and Princess Frog), loves to snuggle up on the couch with a blanket, and is in love with her 'babies'! She has this laugh that is incredibly contagious! It literally rumbles through her from her toes! She is really starting to find her voice now too! She has always talked, but has been really content letting Parker talk for her until now! She loves to tell stories and sing songs!

Parker is our big girl at 28 lbs! Crazy how she was our tiny baby when they were born! She is very head strong and has a very strong will! Unfortunatly she got these attributes from her mother! She is always moving and is constantly getting into something! She has always been very vocal, but has really started to verbalize really well! She says full sentances, and really understands what how to make her words work for her! She loves her little cell phone, to color, and to be outside!

I will do my best to keep this more updated! Thanks for stopping!

YAY Kinsley!

Yesterday Grandma Natalie and Uncle Luke came up for a visit and while they were here Kinsley went potty on the potty chair! It was so funny because the three of us were all crowded around the girls in the bathroom cheering them on, and then Kinsley decided she didnt like the chair that she was on so she got up and stole Parkers chair. As she sat there Natalie commented on how funny it was because she looked like she was faking like she was going to the bathroom, but in actuallity she really went! It was so great! All three of us cheered her on and she got a sticker with a monkey on it! She was very proud of her self! I was glad that Grandma Natalie and Luke got to be there to experience it!

YAY PARKER!

It happened! We had our first real potty in the potty chair tonight! Parker was very excited and picked out her sticker! She went with a Tiger sticker! She did so well! Hopefully this will progress into more! We are very excited  about this progress! Maybe we will be off diapers sooner then we think! Talk about getting a raise in a tough economy....not having to buy diapers would be like taking on a second income!

WooHoo! Keep up the good work girls!

Long time no chat!

So I apologize I have not written recently, but it has been a long couple of weeks! Needless to say the whole family has been busy!

First the girls have transitioned to a new class at daycare and this has been a trying time for us! Unfortunately we have not had the best transition so far so it has been a rough 2 weeks on mom and dad! The girls seem like they are enjoying their time, but it is not the fit that mom and dad were hoping for. Needless to say we are trying to work through this right now! It is just very difficult when these are the people that you are entrusting the most important beings in your life with, and the connection is just not their! Hopefully we will get something worked out soon for our sake!

Along with this transition we are still working towards potty training! The girls are interested but it is still a novel idea to them and very much so on their time and schedule! We aren't going to push it because we want them to adjust with this process! We are hoping sooner then later obviously but will take what we get!

They are both growing very fast, and are changing daily! The are continually learning more words and trying new things! It is crazy how much they know already! It is great! They are learning to help get themselves dressed and undressed! Needless to say there have been several times we lay them down to bed and check on them before we go to bed and they are partially or completly out of their pj's! Luckily we keep the house fairly warm and they have warm bedding!

Soon more to come!