Jilly Says

J: You like brown juice (Dr. Pepper) a lot mommy, but juice is not for me.  But juice is beary lotsa yummy!

Watching "The Little Mermaid"

Ariel: (about Prince Eric) he's beautiful

J: No, boys aren't beautiful!!

In time out

J: Mommy, I think Mattie wants me to be happy, can I get out now?

Trying to say Claire

J: It's too hard, I can't say it.  Mattie Kirra Martinez

(Kirra is their cousin)

Meeting a new friend

J: Hi, my name is Jillian Martinez Kate

J: Daddy, you go fast in Mommy's car, but Mommy can't go fast.

Jilly comes out of the bathroom 

R: Did you wipe?

J: Yep, and I wiped my nose too

(I was too afraid to ask the follow-up question)

We're about to eat dinner and trying to get Jilly to sit down.

J: Just a minute, I will be upstairs

R: Wait, why are you going upstairs?

J: I have to go see how pretty I am

friday five

1.  Jilly has two new nine-year-old best friends.  They are so sweet and come to our door every afternoon to ask if she can play.  I love to watch Jilly join all the big kids riding bikes and playing neighborhood games.  It makes her seem so old... until she has a meltdown when she can't keep up, and then she is definitely the ripe old age of 3.

2.  Remember how Jilly loves to clean the bathroom?  Well Mattie loves cleaning the bathroom too- for the sole reason that the toilet lid is up for a solid 30 seconds.  This week she managed to toss in one of Jilly's shoes and a baby doll whilst some cleaning was going on.  She also managed to toss my phone into one of her not pleasant diapers, but I'll spare you the details.

^^notice little Mattie at the bottom sneaking up to cause mischief 

3.  On Tuesday I watched a few extra kids throughout the day (which I am always happy to do.)  But by the time Bryan got home I had been home allllll day and begged for a little breather.  I went to Old Navy with the intent to look for some things for the girls but somehow found myself in a dressing room with a pile of clothes.  In my defense, nothing I bought was over $10 so it would have been negligent to just leave them there in the store.

4. Mattie is a full-fledged toddly walker and beside the fact that she's too little!!!!!!  I love it.

5.  We have some Chick-fil-A coupons that are expiring at the end of the month so I thought we'd go this weekend.  THEN I remembered that it is Peach Milkshake Season so I called to make sure they had them and yes they do and now they're all I can think about.

Happy Weekend - and go get yourself a peach shake!

SPA Night

For our April Relief Society Activity we had a Spa Night.  Since it was right before General Conference we used SPA as an acronym for Soak in the Spirit of General Conference, Ponder its Personal Meaning, and Arise to Your Potential.  We had mini presentations on each of these categories and the speakers were phenomenal.  We also added some Spa activities and decorations and it was a really great night.  

To go along with Soak, we gave the women a warm towel to soak their hands.  Then for Ponder we gave this handout (with M&Ms attached to the back of course) and gave a few minutes to think of questions.  (Handout found here.)

For Arise, we gave out a homemade hand scrub (2 cups epsom salt, 1 cup baby oil, zest of one orange.) 

Our refreshments were these water bottles and fruit.

A girl on our committee brought these diffusers and the whole room smelled heavenly.  We also decorated with flowers, candles (battery-operated), flowy tablecloths, and I even youtubed how to make a swan towel- and I can't believe I didn't get a picture of it.  (Future guests at my house, plan to see a swan towel in the bathroom from now on.)

We asked someone to make this display with ideas of activities for children during Conference, and she did an amazing job.  

Easter 2014

Dying Eggs- Earlier in the week Jilly and I bought an egg dying kit and she talked about it alllll week long.  On Tuesday she asked every 5 minutes when we were going to "play the egg game" so finally I told her we'd do it in 4 days.  After that she'd occasionally run over to the clock and say "It's 4!  Time to do the eggs."  We have a lot to learn in the time department...  But when we finally made it to Saturday we had so much fun dying our eggs.

Food Truck Revisited- We had to go back to Lowe's again this weekend and there were some new food trucks in the parking lot so naturally we had to try them out.  Krush burgers were so, so, so delicious (overpriced, but delicious) and the girls loved the Hawaiian shaved ice.

Church- We had a wonderful Easter service then Jilly said the theme in Primary.  Her part was "The family is central to God's Plan" and we practiced over and over and over with a little (maybe a lot) of bribery.  When she stood up to say it she whispered something to the Primary President then stepped up to the mic and said it perfectly.  Later the Primary Pres. told me that Jilly had said, "I get a treat if I say it all by myself."  So I'm really glad we've started this precedent.  

We snapped a quick picture of the girlies in their matching dresses then threw them in the car to drive to Nana and Papa's house.

Easter Bunny- the Easter Bunny left baskets and hidden eggs at our house in the morning (Jilly got the Easter hat she'd been talking about for weeks, but then I never even got a picture of it!)  Then at Nana's house we had a delicious dinner, more Easter treats and another Easter egg hunt.  Both girls ate their weight in chocolate- clearly I am a model mother.  It was truly a lovely day to be with family and remember our Savior.

five fact friday

1. This week was Spring Break and even though we didn't really have anything to take a break from it still felt special.  The neighborhood kids played outside all day long til dark.  Last night we had to drag Jilly in sobbing because she wanted to play longer with the big kids.  And when you have a dad that's a biker, this is what happens when you spend any time outside.

2. We had an Easter Egg Hunt with our play group this week.  Jilly loved running around finding eggs.  Mattie, on the other hand, carried an egg around for a little bit then realized it contained sixlets and sat down to suck on the package til I came to the rescue and opened it for her.  

3. Lately I've been getting Jilly to help me with the cleaning.  I give her a rag and a spray bottle of water and let her go to town next to me.  Yesterday she was so excited when I mentioned cleaning the bathrooms she ran in, grabbed a chair to stand on, and started spraying away before I even got there.  (We'll be doing a DNA test next week.)

4.  Since Mattie turned 11 months old this week that means we're almost done with her monthly photos.  I'm quite certain Mattie won't miss these photo shoots, especially the end when Jilly joins her on the chair. 

5. On Monday we did our Resurrection Eggs for Family Night.  Jilly had seen them a few weeks ago and was so, so excited to finally open them.  She was really into the story, especially the "pins" that were used to nail Jesus to the cross.  That night we were saying prayers and she whispered to me, "Mommy let's pray for Jesus and the pins in his hands."  Oh my sweet girl.  Happy Easter!

weekend love

Last weekend we had no plans.  Zero, zilch, nada.  And it turned out to be perfectly wonderful.  Makes me wish I would slow down my crazy planning-obsessed self more often, but... probably not gonna happen. 

Saturday morning started with waffles (I got a waffle iron for Christmas and I declared that part of my gift would be that Bryan is always the waffle maker.  Pure genius.) and I finished making the girls' Easter bows.  After Mattie's nap we headed to Lowe's for some flowers and other fix-it stuff Bryan needed.  Out in the parking lot we noticed a couple of food trucks.  Just the night before I had been lamenting that I had never eaten at a food truck so it was like a sign from heaven (and maybe Bryan already knew there would be food trucks there.)  We got the "Asada Fries"- basically nachos supreme but on fries.  And, yummmm.

You want a closeup?

While Mattie napped Jilly and I planted these flowers and a few others in a hanging basket.  Then I squeezed in a quick nap.

When Mattie woke up we all went swimming.  The water was freezing so I stuck to the hot tub and Mattie stuck to sitting by the pool eating goldfish (and frequently sending them for a swim.)  But Bryan and Jilly braved the water for the first jump of the season.

After swimming Bryan went on a bike ride and I gave the girls a bath and got them all ready for bed.  When he got back we ate dinner, let Jilly watch a show, then put both girls to bed by 7:30.  Bry and I watched Flyboys, which I quite enjoyed. 

On Sunday we had a wonderful morning at church.  

Jilly drew her first family portrait in primary.  (You may notice a third child in there, must be a premonition of a future sibling because this is no announcement.)

After skyping with my family and eating dinner we went to the temple.

And basked in the lovely Sunday afternoon wishing Spring and this weekend would never end.

Mattie: eleven months

Oh Miss Mattie.
It seems like she's growing before our very eyes.  Her biggest accomplishment this month was walking of course.  She takes more wobbly steps every day and is starting to choose walking over crawling.  She loves to wave and has even started waving at dogs when we're out on walks.  She gives everyone big big smiles, but is a Mama's girl and doesn't like to be very far away from me.  She can out-eat Jilly at mealtimes, still loves babies, and knows exactly what she wants and gets very upset when she doesn't get it.  She's our favorite baby in the whole wide world.

Preschool

We were so sad to have preschool end last week, but we got to the end of the alphabet and everyone had a lot going on so we decided to just be done.  It's been fun to look back at how much they've grown in a few months.

When we started preschool Jillian maaaaybe knew the letter J.  And now she knows all the letters and their sounds.  She can write her name (if you write it for her to copy.)  And she's pretty good at writing most of the letters.  She knows a lot about rules; on the way to preschool she would always remind me "I will share and be nice, listen to the teacher, and not take off my clothes to dress-up." (The last rule was always the hardest to follow.)  Best of all, Jilly has learned to love learning.  She loves the little workbooks I bought for her to practice with at the beginning of the year.  All day long she points out letters and tells me what sound they make.  And, of all things, she loves to do flashcards.

It's been a great year with these cute kids! 

five on friday

1. Santa brought our girls a water table this past Christmas.  Bryan was skeptical, especially since the girls wouldn't use it for a few months, but we have played with it every single day this week.  The smiles, giggles, and moments of nicely playing together are abundant and priceless.  That Santa is a rockstar.

 

2.  These shoes.  I have zero recollection of how we got them, and I think maybe even someone gave them to us for Jilly?  But thank you whomever you are because they are the best.

3. Daffodils have been only $1.50 for the past couple weeks; I'm totally hooked and keep going back for more.  But how perfect do they look on our Easter table runner my mother-in-law made?

4. This week was our last week of Preschool; we are going to miss these cuties so, so, so much!  (Not like we won't still see them all the time, just won't be the same)

5. This girl looooooves her stroller and don't you dare take it away or you will suffer her immediate and ear-piercing wrath.

"Dee"

As Mattie gets older, she and Jilly are becoming the best of friends.  When we hear Mattie wake up from a nap, Jilly always runs in first and climbs in the crib to play with Mattie til I get there.  Jilly loves to play hide-and-seek and Mattie knows exactly what "Where's Jilly?" means, and is actually pretty good at finding her sister (Jilly isn't a very quiet hider.)  And when they find each other the giggles are out of control.  The girls' car seats are right next to each other and since Mattie faces backward they look right at each other.  They're constantly sharing snacks, holding hands, and laughing as we drive around.  (Naturally, they also fight a lot, but I wouldn't expect any less from sisters.)  One of my very favorite things about their relationship is Jilly's nickname for Mattie.  For a few months now Jilly has been calling her "Dee Doh" and lately she's shortened it to "Dee."  I have no clue where she came up with this kooky name, but it looks like it's around to stay- she hardly ever calls Mattie by her real name.  And, it seriously cracks me up.

A little hike

On Saturday after the morning session of General Conference, we packed up a picnic and headed out on a little hike (emphasis on little.)  The day was absolutely perfect- green grass, blue sky, and wildflowers all around.  It was such a fun day.

^ Jilly started at turbo speed- how cute is her little camelback?

^ Jilly ran out of steam at the end and needed a ride back to the car

This was one of the best Conference weekends we've had.  Mattie's nap times coincided perfectly with the sessions, and Jilly is finally at an age where she can play quietly for an extended amount of time.  We painted nails, colored, did a packet I printed, made a bunny banner, and played with some quiet toys.  Surprisingly, one of Jilly's favorite things was to find whoever was speaking on a chart of General Authorities and circle that person.  

On Sunday Bryan's parents came to spend the day with us.  We ate and ate and ate, went on a walk to feed some geese during the break, and played a few games of Uno (of course.)  It was a wonderful weekend of family and wonderful messages.