March 2011

The days fly by so fast lately. It's go, go, go around here. And boy do Dan and I wish it would be more like, sleep, sleep, go! We are loving our girls and when it's good, it's good. But it's also been quite an adjustment. Ana likes to be heard and Sofia like to play nonstop and that leaves little room for rest. But we are adjusting and I am so lucky to be able to stay home with them. I love them so much!

But life goes on, no matter how tired you are. And March was a lot of fun. Here are some of the things we were up to.

Crazy Shoe Day
Sofia had silly shoe day at her Mother's Day Out program. She thought it was so cool to wear mismatched shoes.




Seven Weeks Old
At 7 weeks old Ana and I had an impromptu photo shoot where she showed me some of her silly faces.








Visitors
Then something wonderful happened - we had visitors! First Papi came and spent a few days with his girls,





and we took Sofia to see her first real ballet, Tchaikovsky's The Sleeping Beauty at the Houston Ballet. She did great at the show, and it was a long ballet - three acts - almost three hours. But the poor thing didn't quite understand that she wasn't going to get to dance! I had to explain to her it was like watching a movie but that if she liked it then we can sign her up for lessons. So ballet lessons are coming this summer - because she loved it!

Then finally Ana got to meet her boy cousins when Tio David and Aunt Julie came to town.





We were so happy to have them here, we had so much fun! It was a rainy day so we hung out with the kids at the Galleria where they acted like monkeys,





and palled around.



Sofia got to have Matthew sleep over one night and the next night she stayed at the hotel with them. She's such a big girl - it was her first "sleep over" but that kid would do anything to hang out with Matthew. She looks up to him so much - it's so sweet!



We had such a nice time! I love having family in town.


Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
The month of March brings a Houston tradition - the Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo. It's like a rite of passage and since Sofia was old enough to enjoy the Carnival this year we spent a day doing just that.

And we learned something about our girl that day. She's more adventurous than we knew.

She wanted to ride the Dragon Roller Coaster so Dan took her



but as you can see by her face she was not happy to share a seat with him,



and she actually MADE him get off. Take a look how happy she is to be doing it "all by myself."



I was a nervous Mommy off to the side watching her on there all alone and I couldn't believe Dan let her ride alone but he said she insisted and he obliged. And to my surprise she LOVED it! She was putting her hands in the air, and you could hear her the whole way screaming, "Woo hoo!" It was hilarious!



It was such a fun day! She rode rides with Mom,



picked out a cowboy hat, pink of course,



rode a camel with her friend, Molly. I love the look on her face!





She ate her first turkey leg,



and quite enjoyed it!



Oh, and remember Ana? She was there too. In between naps she got a diaper change but she wasn't quite in the rodeo spirit even though I made sure she had a Cowboy Heart with a lasso on her shirt.



There was a really cool Agriculture exhibit,



where she petted a fake sheep



and looked at some real ones.



She milked a cow,



picked some peaches,



and drove a John Deere.



Then we headed inside to get out of the sun. It was a hot day! Sofia and I got in a barrel and pretended to be rodeo clowns,



and then Sofs hung out with Dad



and checked out actual Livestock.



We headed back out so Sofia could get a cupcake painted on her face,





play some games with Daddy,



and win herself a pink duck.



Ana took a nap.



And then we came across this monster of an obstacle course. There was no way I'd let her do it alone.



I just knew she'd panic up on that bridge and then surely she'd be too paralyzed with fear to make it down that long slide. So, again I told Dan he better go with her. And again, she refused to allow him. And there she went, as confident as could be. She completed the entire thing - without hesitation or reservation. And she did it fast.



Dan was proud! It was pretty cool. We are realizing what a big girl she has become. Even more so now that her sister is here.



Sofia ended her first Rodeo Carnival with a great big chocolate covered strawberry.



And Ana ended it with - you guessed it - a nap!




Something to be Happy About
Ana celebrated her second month on this planet with her first smile. A real one. She looked right at me and flashed me the biggest, goofiest grin! I love it and managed to get it on camera. So sweet!




A Day at the Park
March always promises some beautiful weather in Houston so we took advantage and went to our favorite park for dinner,



relaxing,





and some soccer. Dan and Sofia play together a lot and she's getting pretty good.



We also played at the playground and as I was snapping this picture of Sofia,



I was remembering vividly the day these were taken.





And I realize it's true what they say, it does go by fast.


A New Bike
We got a knock on the door one day and there was a bike for Sofia!



Our sweet neighbors, John and Manuel bought this bike for their niece to play with while she was in town. And since she lives far away and doesn't visit often they figured the best place for it to go was to Sofia. She loves it but still needs some practice with pedaling.

So to say thanks my little Cowgirl



painted a little thank you message for them. Now we just have to remember to walk over and give it to them!





Our Girls
I really love having this blog. It captures and narrates our family's special memories. Ones that may fade away because of the stress of every day life. If you were to ask me an hour ago how things are going I probably would have complained about how tired I am and how I can't keep up with housework or get to the gym. But after spending time poring over our family's photos and memories I'm reminded about how blessed Dan and I are to have each other, to have these girls and to have our friends and family who care enough about us to read about the adventures of the Coussirat Clan.











I love these kids!

Still So Little

Sometimes Ana hangs out on my bed while I'm busy getting ready for the day. On this day I propped her up on a pillow and as I took a look at her she looked so tiny on our bed.



I think she's getting so big, and she is, she is 11.5 pounds now, but sometimes you need a King size bed to see things from a different perspective. She's still so little.

Ana's Swing

Ana Mercedes, 6 weeks.

This little baby likes to cry. And sometimes a little time in her swing makes her feel all better. And when Sofia hears her sister's cries she offers her stuffed animals. On this day it worked.

Our Special Sofia

These days things have pretty much revolved around little Ana. And although Sofia shows no signs of resentment or jealousy we still try to make some special time for her.

One day Dan stayed home with Ana while Sofia and I went to get a Mommy-Daughter mani-pedi. It was her first time and she was so cute.



The lady cut her nails and painted them the perfect pink which Sofia picked out herself. They even painted a little flower on her big toe nails. She loved it!





Another day we told Sofia she could chose an activity of her choice and it was the cutest answer. She said she wanted to go on a date. It must be because she knows sometimes Dan and I go on "dates" and she stays with Grandma. So we agreed, we would go on a Family Date. We threw out some options and her pick was to go to the Galleria and jump on the "jumpy thing." She has been itching to jump on the bungee trampoline there for quite some time. They'll strap on anyone who weighs more than 20 pounds but we decided that she is old enough now to try it out.





It was amazing. She had no fear whatsoever. Not even shyness with all these people watching her. She loved it and did great! If you listen, you can hear her screaming, "Whoa! Woohoo!" It was fun to watch her be so fearless and have so much fun but I think I was more nervous than she was. No matter though, she did great!



Ana wasn't worried though. She slept through the whole thing,



while her sister soared up high.



Then we went to dinner at "The Jungle," which is what Sofia calls the Rainforest Cafe. It was a really great Family Date!

Happy Valentine's Day

Sofia had a little party at her new school this year. I had hoped to do the same Sucker Valentine that we had done for her last year but this Mommy couldn't muster up the energy for a photo shoot. Actually, taking the picture would have been easier than doing Sofia's hair and making her look presentable.

So instead we decided on a craft project. I drew the Valentine and Sofia water colored them. It made for a nice little activity for us. Even though I had to draw some of these with a screaming baby in my arms we made it work and Sofia was so proud of her artwork. And then we tied heart-shaped suckers to each little card.





Once she got home from school she was so excited about her Valentine's box and couldn't wait to open up all the little treats from her friends.






But not before showing it off to Daddy and baby A!

She's Growing

Just like a plant, if you water babies enough they'll grow. So it's a good thing Sofia has her watering can.



Sofia loves her little sister more than I could have imagined. She's so sweet with her and Dan and I love watching them together.





And now that she's filling out it's also been fun to put Ana in clothes that I vividly remember Sofia wearing. Sofia wore this little striped number on her first outing with us to Onion Creek. And now it's Ana's turn to wear it.

Nap Time

Sofia knows Mom and Dad sometimes just can't help but fall asleep when we have pure sweetness in our arms.





And since she loves to do what we do she has begged to nap with her sweet baby sister. And since we all know that can't happen she's then begged to "pretend to nap" with her sweet baby sister. So, of course I couldn't resist... Here are some shots of Sofia and Ana "napping."