Adventures at the Children's Museum

Hylie and Eliana love going to the Kohl's Children's Museum.  We were able to get a trip in yesterday and as we were pulling up to the building, Eliana pointed out her window and excitedly squealed, "Babies! Babies!"  Both girls absolutely love the "Nursery" section of the museum--but they don't seem to mind any of the other interactive exhibits, either!  Here are some pics from multiple visits:

 Hylie tends to get very serious and focused during imaginative play!

 I don't think Hylie is ready for Eliana to take the wheel...

As Eliana and Hylie were dancing in one of the music rooms, Eliana actually recognized that the crazy shapes on the screen in front of them were their silhouettes, she identified both herself and Hylie!

And look who's always happy to tag along!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls

Having our children has been among the biggest blessings in our lives.  They keep us humble, grateful, and on our toes.  It has been a delight watching our daughters grow and discover new things about themselves and the world.  As I hold Lillian, I find myself noticing the similar sweet features the girls share as well as their beautiful, unique attributes.  Here are a few pics of the girls side by side of what they all looked like at certain ages and in certain outfits...can you figure out who is who?

Top pic: Lillian, Hylie, Eliana

Blessing Dress Pic: Hylie, Eliana, Lillian

Bottom pic: Lillian, Hylie

Lillian - 4 Months

Lillian had a great 4 month check up, handled her vaccinations like a champ, and continues to hang out above the 99th percentile!  She weighed in at 16 lbs. and is 27 inches long.

She's a little "Chatty Cathy" and will enthusiastically tell you anything you want to know!  She's starting to move around a little bit more--when she's laying on the floor, she's seldom in the same place she started in.

Her giggles and smiles melt our hearts, she sucks on her hands A LOT and every once in a while just her thumb makes it in (and boy, she just goes to town when that happens!) and Mom is excited to report that her epic diaper blow-outs are lessening--whew!  

She's starting to grab at objects and currently her favorite thing to hold on to is Mom's hair.  I'm sure her sisters won't be far behind...we'll see how they handle it!  Hylie and Eliana continue to dote all over Lillian and in return they get cute smiles and laughs.

We sure love you, Lillian!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Last week we celebrated how much we love each other in this family, crazy quirks and all!

Hylie and Eliana made little valentines for Geoff and we put together a heart-shaped pizza (which included heart-shaped pepperonis!) and chocolate covered strawberries.

Geoff surprised all his girls with balloons, flowers, and chocolate!

Me with my first and only Valentine!

Unfortunately, Hylie spent a lot of the day like this:

She had a temperature for two days, which then brought about a cough and congestion, but she is finally feeling (and acting) more like herself these days!

A Day in the Life of Geoff

Geoff has been with Sentinel Technologies for a year and a half and has been thriving in his position.  He has been given a lot of exciting opportunities to represent the company and has taken on a lot of responsibilities.  Recently he has been doing a ton of demos on stuff that I would never be able to explain...but the people he presents to understand what he's talking about and I guess that's all that matters, right?  Their PR person took a few pics of him in action, so I thought it would be fun to share them!

 Look at that handsome man deep in thought!

For more Geoff news: At the beginning of February, he visited the National Institute of Health so they could run a few tests and screenings.  When Geoff was 10-years-old he had a grand mal seizure and soon found out he had a brain tumor.  The brain tumor was removed but scans of his brain indicated he had Multiple Sclerosis (MS).  Ever since that time, Geoff's condition of good health never changed.  The Mayo Clinic would contact him every 5 years to conduct more screening and always sent him away with a clean bill of health, but Geoff always had a nagging fear that one day his MS would not be dormant anymore.  Last year, Geoff made a trip to the Mayo Clinic where the doctors removed his MS diagnosis!  They said if it has been dormant and never-changing for this long, there is no worry of it resurfacing.  The doctors then asked if Geoff would be willing to go to the NIH to do more extensive screening to see if any answers could be found as to why Geoff's MS never developed.  He agreed and had interesting and positive experiences interacting with the doctors and staff.  

That looks comfortable, doesn't it?

They took epic amounts of blood--so much that on the second drawing of blood (which occurred on day 2 of his visit, because they took the maximum amount of blood allowed on day 1) Geoff passed out!  Yikes!  Geoff survived all the pricking, probing, and intense MRI sessions and recently got the results of all his screenings: everything looks wonderful, the only 'red flag' was that he had a Vitamin D deficiency.  Ha ha!  I think EVERYONE in Chicago in the winter has a Vitamin D deficiency!  But on a serious note, we are so grateful for Geoff's health and for the miracle of his MS diagnosis being lifted.  Geoff is a loving, supportive, and involved husband and father.  The girls and I are so blessed to have him in our lives--plus, without Geoff, how else could we get such awkward face swaps?