Friday, March 23, 2012

Kentucky in March

PRETTY KENTUCKY!!
Brandon's first cousin, April, had her wedding this past weekend and we were fortunate enough to be able to attend. We left Thursday to drive up to Kentucky. The kids were great on the road and we were all excited to see family and friends!


Breakfast at Mamaw & Papaw's
Friend Fernanda  (Aunt Fe)
Mamaw and Papaw
Uncle Bubba & Masyn

Isla & Everett with Mamaw
Papaw & Everett

We spent quality time with Mamaw, Papaw,  Uncle Bart, Aunt Jess, Kaden and Masyn as well  as the rest of the Hensley family and friends!!



Playing in Papaw's Greenhouse


Isla, Kade and Masyn

April - the beautiful bride!

E and Daddy - April's Wedding

Flower Girl

April & Will Pulkinen

Yankee's Spring Training

Today was a special day for Isla as it was her first time to a Major League Baseball Stadium and she had Mommy and Daddy all to herself. It turned out to be a beautiful day...85 degrees, sunny and thankfully our seats were in the shade. GREAT DAY :)


Ice Cream with Daddy
Yankees vs. Twins

George Steinbrenner Field, Tampa FL




Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Bubble Bath Time

One of our favorite times of the day...bath time!! 
Bathing Beauty

She loves bubbles and all her bath toys.  We have done the crayons on the wall, bath letters, color fizz that turns the water different colors, but you give her a plastic cup and she is the most happy to fill it up and pour it out....over and over and over again!! She loves to go over her numbers, colors, and songs while in the bathtub too. The only way to get her out of the tub is to tell her it's time to brush her teeth or tell her it's Bubby's bath time and I need help washing him.
Bath Letters

         Brushing her teeth with Daddy       
Everett loves bath time just as much as his big sister. He loves the warm water and watching Isla stand over him trying to put soap on his feet (that's what I let her wash).  She now knows to wait to wash his feet until after he pee-pees, because one time she was bent over and he got some serious airtime right into the side of her face!!

Bubby's Bubble Bat

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

St Pete & Sarasota Weekend

Our Day with Aunt Shelby...

Busy weekends seem to be the norm for us lately.  We are in Sarasota at least 2x a week and now that real beach weather is here...it will probably increase.  When we stay in Tampa we usually have a function with Brandon's work, church or taking the kids to parks and watching ball games! This weekend was non-stop fun for the kids as Aunt Shelby came up Friday to spend her half-day at the pool with us.  We hung out by the pool and snacked while Isla explored the deck and Everett watched and giggled. Aunt Shelby is really good at taking pictures and captured some great ones of the kids! After our pool day, Aunt Shelby took Isla back to St. Pete for the evening to spend time with her and Uncle Matt. They took Isla to dinner in the cafeteria on campus and then to Admiral Farragut's first-ever Lacross game. Apparently, it didn't start out as well as plan because Isla was TERRIFIED of the guys in helmets and sticks running around on the field.  Aunt Shelby quickly resolved the issue with a trip right next door to the "park" as Isla calls the playground.  When we picked Isla up she was a hot-sweaty-dirty mess which was a result of a fun evening with Aunt Shelby!! We headed down to Sarasota after picking her up...




Cousin Jocey's 6th Birthday Party

Jocey - The Birthday Girl
Saturday morning we spent at Siesta Key Beach with some friends. We watched Megan train on the volleyball courts while Isla played in the sand and Evertt got to roll on his towel.  We had to leave before noon to nap and shower for Jocey's birthday party at BounceU.  Isla was the youngest active kid at the party (Everett and Reece were mere spectators being passed around). Isla got to bounce with Aunt Cammy and Uncle Rhett and wore herself out laughing! Grammy and Poppy then spent the evening with the worn out babies as Brandon and I enjoyed a nice evening out. Sunday morning we headed back to Tampa in which the babies slept on the drive back and then Isla proceded to take a 3 hour nap...they were tuckered out!

Bounce'n with Aunt Cammy

Grsmmy & Poppy playing hoops
Uncle Steve helping with her swing
Dad's hanging out with the little ones
Grammie, Reece, Isla & Cammy

Cousins Reece & Everett











Thursday, March 8, 2012

A healthy & hearty 4 month old!

The 4 months shots...ah...never been a fan of these "Wellness" doctor visits. Although, I will say that we absolutely love Dr. Hauser.  She is so great with the kids and is more like a family member rather than a doctor.  She asks for pictures to put on her wall in the office and when she walks in the room she spends the first 10 minutes gushing over them and loving on them. She has a heart of gold and is really practical but cautious when caring for Isla and E.

At 4 months old, Everett has peaked in height at 28 inches (99 percentile) and maintains the sturdy 19.19 lbs (96 percentile). Dr. Hauser calls him healthy and hearty!!
4 month shots - Poor Baby
I can't talk about our new doctor without mentioning our nurse, Stormi.  Stormi is about 5'10, 220lbs of midnight darkness (she's black, dark black). She calls Everett, "Papa" which I think is adorable.  She usually says it in the plural form, "Papas" and with her flavored accent it is hilarious.  She and Everett bonded early on when he peed on her while being weighed and she says in her 10 years he is actually the first believe it or not!

The friendliness in the doctors office doesn't make the shots any easier...but E is a trooper.  He cries it out until I'm able to pick him up and then he is fine.  He hasn't had any reactions to shots except to sleep the rest of the day!!

Passed out on the floor :)


At the risk of sounding like every other mother...I can't believe he is 17 weeks already!!





Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Family Faces on the Fridge



Everyday when Brandon gets home from work he is greeted by Isla with a hug and then she immediately points to the fridge.  He takes her over to it and they take turns pointing to pictures and saying everyone's name. She misses her family, but sees you and says your name everyday :)

We have a photo book of pictures for all the Elam/Hensley family members and a calendar for the Erb Family...she loves to look at them and say everyone's name!!

'EARS the Situation

Isla has a thing with ears...she likes to grab them. Not just her ears, although that is what usually soothes her to sleep, but she likes daddy's, mommy's, family's, friend's and even her own dog's ears.  She reaches for an ear much more when she is tired or upset, but we've also noticed that it is her comfort in almost any situation.  She doesn't have a blankie or a stuffed animal...just give her an ear and she is good to go.



Isla  falling asleep with Bella while holding her ear.  Isla with Unce Rhett!

Sometimes it is a gentle grasp of your ear as she massages her fingers all over, exploring it to a whole new level then you knew possible...and sometimes you will get a significant YANK or even better, a good pinch to the ear in which you might want to scream holy moly!  Some people may think that since ears are made of cartilage it probably doesn't not hurt that bad, but those people haven't met Isla Marie! Leave it to Isla who can sometimes make it so painful that she can draw out a flinch, scream or even blood from your ear.  Most recently she has discovered a technique in which we call her a human Q-Tip.  She takes her pointer finger (and sometimes her thumb) and sticks it as far into your ear as possible.  This is what I prefer as it seems to be less chance of her causing me pain as she hasn't quite discovered how far she can actually push her finger in.

Daddy has had it the worst in the pain department.  She is usually pretty gentle with my ear, but Daddy's ear is close to the 'plastic surgery is needed' phase.  In fact, one morning I woke up and asked him if he had a nose bleed in the middle of the night as I noticed a significant amount of blood on his pillow. He shook his head and said, "no, no that would be my ear...Isla broke the skin last night with her finger nail". OUCH!


It has become such a normalicy in our life that we really don't even noticed it anymore... until we are in public--restaurants, post office, mall etc. and someone will say, "is she holding your ear?" That's when we realize that it isn't the most normal of tendencies, but it is pretty cute the way she latches on to you in order to feel comfort.

There are days we think about her at 16 driving with one hand on the wheel and one hand on her ear, or having her first dance at her wedding while holding on to her groom's ear.  I could see long term habits forming here :) haha!
Baby Brother's Ear
Mommy's Ear
Cousin Masyn's Ear
Uncle Bart's Ear
Mamaw and Kaden's Ear

Everett's Ear
Gabi's Ear
 
Papaw's Ear
Here are just a couple more pictures of her in action...