For Christmas, Grandma Patti bought Arabella a "Me and My Dolly" outfit set.  Bella commented at the time that maybe Nugget could wear the dolly outfit.  We all laughed and remembered how little Bella was as a baby... little did I know that I would have another tiny baby! 

Arabella was delighted that she got to match her sister!  I guess I should start looking for more matching outfits for the girls. 

Spring Break 2012

Arabella, Alivia, and I went to Sioux City to spend the week with my parents.  We had a blast! The weather was unusually beautiful and we spent lots of time outside. 

Rollerblading with new (and really big) elbow and knee pads at Grandma's house

 Arabella even got to wear her new swimsuit and play in the sprinkler with her friend Kaylee.  I can't believe we had nice enough weather to run through the sprinkler in March!!!  Crazy Iowa weather...

 Showing me her Popsicle mustache (I know you can't really see it, but she was insistent that it was there!)

 This picture was actually taken in WDM before we left on Friday (note the long sleeves and jeans).  She told me she and Rosie (her doll) wanted to go write in her journal about nature.  When I looked in her journal later, it said "BRDS   GRAS  SUN" and I felt so proud of my little writer!

 Reading extra bedtime stories to both of my girls = the perfect way to spend my evenings!

 Alivia even got to meet her Great Gramma Alice! 

 

Alivia is One Month Old!

I can hardly believe it's already been one month!  It seems like just yesterday we went to the hospital to meet our sweet girl.  Alivia is already showing us how different she is from her sister.  She eats differently, sleeps differently, and acts differently. 

At 1 Month:

* weighs 7 pounds 10 ounces... this is not as much as her pediatrician would like her to weigh, so we're working on helping Livi gain weight.  She eats like a champ, just spits lots of it back up!

 * wears newborn size clothes and diapers... I'm excited for her to grow so she can wear some of the cute outfits we have in 0-3 month sizes! 

* has deep blue eyes and she's just starting to really look at you when you hold her.  She'll look at you intently as you talk or sing to her and you can tell she loves to listen!

* sleeps for 4 hours stretches at night.  Mommy wishes they were 5 or 6 hour stretches, but 4 hours is better than 3! 

* loves to be sung to... especially if her sister is the singer... if Livi is crying and Arabella starts to sing to her, Livi stops crying.  It's amazing!

  * loves to be outside and go for walks in the carrier.  We've been lucky to have beautiful weather lately and Alivia and I have been taking full advantage of it. 

 

God has truly blessed us with our sweet Alivia Jean.

Sisterly Love

Arabella is so good with her sister.  I cannot believe how much she loves Alivia.  

Arabella prays for her sister... kisses her sister... worries about her sister... reads to her sister... sings to her sister... tickles her sister... tells stories to her sister... protects her sister... and more.

I can only hope she continues to feel this way about Alivia as she continues to grow and change.

Can you figure out which baby is which?  One of these pictures is Arabella at one week old.  The other picture is Alivia at one week old.  Which baby is which?  Comment with your guess!

Picture A

Picture B

"I'll never let anyone have you. You are MY baby sister!"

 Arabella absolutely loves her baby sister.  Anyone that asks how she likes her sister she just smiles and say she likes her... but one day someone said to Alivia, "Oh you're just so sweet I could take you home with me!"  That visitor left and Arabella immediately went over to her baby sister who was laying in her swing and said, "I'll never let anyone have you.  You are MY baby sister!"

Such a proud big sister

"Mommy, Livi bit me!        Just joking, she's too little to bite!"

I love love LOVE this picture of my girls.  Arabella is absolutely smitten with her baby sister... and I'm quite sure Alivia feels exactly the same!

Announcing Our Newest Addition!

Alivia Jean Leighton was born at 7:08 PM on Wednesday February 22, 2012.

She weighed exactly 7 pounds and was 19.5 inches.  

Alivia is perfect and we couldn't be happier to have her home with us.