And there is quite...

What a week! Starting last Monday, we have had family visiting everyday until Sunday. It was such a wonderful week that the girls really did not want to end! I don't blame them, I didn't want it too either!

Monday brought us my dad who stayed with us through Friday. We had such a great time hanging out with him and enjoying the nice weather when we got it! Tuesday we lucked out and the weather was great so we decided to hit the Como Zoo in St. Paul. This is a pretty awesome Zoo and to top it off its free! The girls loved seeing all of the animals...they explained that they were going to grow up to be Zoo Keepers! This is along with being Firefighters, Police women, and Ballerinas! Here are some pictures that we snapped while we were there:

Parker was the Map reader...she said we were finding a treasure!



 

That night we also took Papa Rob out for a movie! We went and watched Madagascar 3...and laughed the whole time! It was hilarious and the girls loved it!

Wednesday brought not only a day full of Papa Rob, but also Grandma Beth, Papa John, and Uncle Matthew! We got to hang out at the Mall of America for a little while and had a great dinner before my parents and brother had to head back to Sioux Falls. As if the week hadn't been fun enough, Thursday the girls had swim lessons, and then we spent the afternoon at the pool! The girls loved having Papa Rob at the 'Big Gym' swimming with them!

To start off the weekend, we went to the Mall of America and Ikea with Papa Rob before he had to head out to La Crosse WI. After nap time though the girls were in such good moods because they knew Grandma Natty was on her way! She was able to get here shortly before bed time so the girls got to get some snuggles in! Saturday was an interesting day...we were hoping to go swimming for the day, but the weather up here does not like us to plan a swim day! So we started off the day taking Grandma to the Farmers Markets that we like! We lucked out and the weather turned out ok and we were able to get some swim time in!

That night the girls got to play outside, snuggle, and eat popcorn while watching movies with grandma while Nick and I got out for a date! They love getting to hang out with their Grandma Natty! Unfortunately with Sunday, came the day that Natalie had to head home. :( None of us like when family has to leave...especially Grandma Natty since we don't get to see her as often.

Needless to say after a busy week full of family, it is rather quite at our home now! As much I love the quite and the order...we miss the family too!

Finally Hair Cuts!

When I was younger, I was almost 3 years old before I finally started to grow hair. When I did start to get it, it was platinum blonde and curly. It took forever for me to finally get hair, so when it grew in with curls my mom was so excited! When she finally decided to cut my hair, the curls disappeared...so sad! Although my hair was still super cute, it was so disappointing to have my curls disappear!

As with me, the girls were very slow to grow a full head of hair. When they started getting it, Kinsley got stick straight beautiful platinum blonde hair. It drapes so cute to the side and looks like it has natural highlights! Parker got beautiful curly blonde hair that framed her face in such a cute way. Since I remembered what happened when I cut my hair, I was very hesitant to cut either of their hair. I held off for as long as I could but couldn't wait any longer!

Kinsley got her hair cut April 2011 because while celebrating Easter she got one of her pig tails caught in a hand held bubble blower. Needless to say I had to trim her hair to get the blower out. It wasn't drastic but was bummed. Parkers we left untouched though! That is until right before Easter this year. Both of the girls were in need of getting cut so I decided to take the plunge while we were back home visiting family! I took both girls in and was amazed at how well they did!

They both got taken back by different stylists so I explained the general concept of what we wanted and walked back and forth between the girls! They sat perfectly and didn't cry at all! I had one of those really proud momma moments!

Here are the results:

Parker Before:

Parker After:

**Don't worry, her curls stayed! It was just still damp when we took the pic!**

Kinsley after:

She was being a stinker so I also am including one from later that afternoon:

This way you can see how cute it turned out!

I opted to get both girls the Bobb hair cut...this way it is a simple cute little girls haircut! Plus its still the right length that we can do pig tails when we want to!

Oh how time flys!

Since we have moved up to Farmington, time has seemed to just disappear before us! Between Nick working, the house finally selling, several small holidays, and just day to day life...life is running at full speed!

The girls are getting so big and its amazing the things that they are saying and doing now! They literally remember everything, so it shocks me what they will bring up and say! Here is a great example, we have a rule that the girls are not supposed to play in our room so when I catch them in there I will say "Please get out of momma's room". WELL the other day Nick went into the girls' room and was instantly informed to "get out of our room dad" by Parker!

Another great one, we were driving home from the gym in Eagan and it was starting to get dark when Parker asked "Can I wish on a shooting Star?". I told her we will have to wait until it was dark and we say a falling star. She then informed me she wanted to "Wish for Angelo"! He was a cute little boy in her preschool class that she has been to since the middle of January! It just cracked Nick and I up! Our little girl is already boy crazy at age 4!! Oh we are going to have our hands full with these ladies!

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!