Divide and Conquer

Ken and I had the idea that if we separated Sophia from Amelia, we might just have success potty-training Sophia . . . since we haven't had success with Amelia . . . yet.  So this weekend, I took Amelia with me to Portland and Ken stayed home with Sophia.  I used the weekend to visit with friends, spend lots of one-on-one time with Amelia, and stay with some of my absolute favorite people in the world - the Bullocks.  Here is Amelia with my friend's son at a very fun park in Wilsonville.

And no visit to Portland is complete without a visit to the temple, even if it is to just walk around the outside and enjoy the fountains and beautiful flowers.

 (sorry for the un-rotated picture)

Amelia and I often have a hard time dealing with each other, so I took it as a compliment when Amelia told me this weekend that I was her "best friend . . . even if we had a rough morning".  Conquered that weekend for sure!

And as for Ken, the "divide and conquer" worked on his end too.  He successfully potty-trained Sophia, who was very excited to tell me that she "used the potty" when I got home on Sunday.  Yeah Sophia! . . . and of course, Ken!

Amelia is getting closer to success as well; she's just slowly, bit by bit, working it out in her head . . . but she'll get there!

Dance Class Recap

The girls had their final dance class for this session.  Sophia had so much fun.  Here she is doing a curtsey after her last class.

And here is the proud girl holding her certificate of achievement.  She looks so grown up!

I was proud of Amelia for trying a tap class AND for sticking with it the whole session.  Here she is proving that the tongue thing is not just something Sophia does ;)

And her curtsey at the end.  Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of her with her certificate because the camera died right at the end of class.

Happy Birthday Amelia!

My dear sweet baby turned 5 years old this week.  Here are a few of my favorite "faces of Amelia":

"Where are we going in this thing?  And why are you guys laughing at me?"

 "What?  This is smiling!"

 And sometimes it seems like I have a 2-headed monster living with us ;)

Amelia celebrated her birthday by having a party with friends, donuts, and painting a flower pots (I honestly don't know what I was thinking planning a painting craft for 8 little girls, but they turned out cute . . . and I survived thanks to a wonderful neighbor/ friend.)

And despite my lack of enthusiasm for buying "character" toys/clothes/etc, Amelia got an Elsa doll and was so excited. 

In Primary last Sunday, Amelia answered a few questions about herself, so that the kids could get to know her better.  A few of her answers made me laugh:

• "What superpower would you like to have?"  Amelia said she's like to have the superpower that got her dressed and ready for the day.  Apparently she hates getting ready for the day as much as I hate getting her ready for the day.
• Least favorite food: chicken - true statement - she hates it when I cook chicken for dinner . . . unless of course, it's "on the bone" and then she's more likely to eat it.
• She said she wanted to be a scientist when she grew up . . . that might explain the messes and all the questions she asks.
• And finally - her favorite thing about herself - that she is a good whistler.  Another very true statement.  Amelia whistles all the time and everywhere.  I am frequently asked by random strangers in stores if that is Amelia whistling because it sounds like an adult.

Happy Birthday to my caring, thoughtful, silly, strong-willed girl.  We love you!