Ballerina Girl

She woke up bright and early this morning, so excited that "today I am a ballerina girl!" She had her dance clothes on by 7:30 am and asked about every 15 minutes if it was time to leave for ballet class.

A very sweet (and brave!) lady from our church is teaching ballet to the girls on Wednesday afternoons during her lunch break at work. A friend and her husband graciously arranged for these sweet little girls to meet for class downtown in his photography studio and the setup was perfect!

The studio was divided by a curtain, which the moms and younger siblings stayed behind during class, so the girls could listen to the instruction without distraction. I didn't get any shots during the actual class, but we did set up our video cameras to record the action and it was hilarious to watch once we were home!

All of Anna Cate's clothes were too big (even though I bought an XXS) and kept sliding off her shoulders. Maybe if I wash them and throw them in the dryer they will shrink?

Of course, Caroline had to put on some ballerina clothes too!

Her nervous face

Is there anything sweeter than little girl ballerinas? It was about all I could stand to see these sweet friends in there little leotards and skirts!! :)

"So Callie, when you think the big girls are gonna let us join in too?"

This picture is too sweet not to include with the group! Two of the five little sisters who came with the big girls today.

:)

Tomorrow is a Big Day

(My apologizes! This post accidently was deleted yesterday. So actually, today was the big day and I do indeed have pictures to share!)

And I'm not sure who is more excited, she or I! She has already been to three ballets in the total of her three little years here with us. Most everyday, she wears her favorite leotard, tutu and most always requests to wear her hair in a bun when given the choice. Her favorite Pandora channel is Ballet Music. Her little sister and I are privileged to attend at least two shows a day, but are always offered an intermission in case we need to go to the bathroom. ;)

This morning, while she was at preschool, Caroline and I went and picked out her first real leotard for her first ballet class tomorrow. We wrapped it up and are anxiously waiting for her to open it tonight after dinner. I am a little nervous, but she is a lot excited so hopefully things will go well tomorrow!

:)

More pictures to follow...

To Share or Not to Share?

That is the question.

I love the idea of the girls sharing a room; giggling, sharing secrets, and creating sweet memories of their years here together in our house. In my mind, it looks something like this:

But in reality, now that Caroline is in a big girl bed, there isn't much space left in their room, not to mention their closet. The bedrooms in our house were definitely intended for only one person.

With both girls in one room, the setup is very similar to this picture: a pair of twin beds with a dresser in the middle. But that is all there is room for.

And don't even mention nap time. The one afternoon that I allowed them to nap in the same room, no one had a nap. They were mousely quiet for about 45 minutes and I thought they were sleeping until I heard four little feet jumping off of a bed and onto the floor. When I opened the door, I found the room was a total disaster and they were both wide awake. So for now, Anna Cate has to rest in a seperate room.

We have a playroom and three children bedrooms in our house and it seems silly to have two empty bedrooms, while the girls are literally squeezed into one bedroom together.

So for all these little reasons, it makes the most sense to put them each in their own room except for one really big reason.

They love being together.

Some nights when we check on them, we find Caroline curled up in Anna Cate's bed, fast asleep holding hands with her big sister.

Be still my beating mama heart.

:)

I'm trying to decide what we are going to do so I can either decorate their room with matching bedding or seperate them and decorate their own rooms individually to their personalities.

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Did anybody share a room with a sibling growing up and if so, did you enjoy it? Or would have preferred to have your own space?

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Scrumdiddly

Let's pretend like I haven't been gone forever and a day, and that I don't have over a month's worth of activities and projects to share. We have been busy busy busy and I am overwhelmed with where to start.

So instead, let me just start by sharing a new favorite in our house:

Mocha Ice Cream Cake

It is scrumdiddlyumptious and it takes all of three minutes to whip up.

All you need is this:

- An Oreo piecrust

- 1/2 tub of coffee ice cream

- 1/2 tub whip cream

My mom, smart lady that she is, made up this recipe on the way home from a girls' getaway last weekend. We were brainstorming yummy ideas for desserts and she came up with this recipe which really is easy-as-pie!

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Mix together softened coffee ice cream with whip cream and pour into chocolate pie crust. After you've allowed the pie to set in the freezer, drizzle with chocolate syrup and a squirt of Rediwhip.

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Wala! 3 minutes and you are done. And it is faaaabulous!

(even if you are a non-coffee drinker like me)

:)