Four Months New!

Well...it seems odd to use the word "old" in a description of Ashley, but she is four months old TODAY!
We went to her checkup this morning and discovered that she is 11 pounds 3 ounces and 23 inches long! (10th percentile for height and weight)...and it turns out that she has a MASSIVE head (50th percentile!) I always said she had a big melon!

But, of course, we like to think it's because she is housing an insanely large brain! You go, girl!

A Walk In the Park

Well...maybe it's not exactly a park, but it was BLAZING hot in Houston and we didn't want to spend all day outside! So, instead, we enjoyed a walk around the lake in front of Grammy and Pop-Pop's house!


And by walk, I mean Daddy and Mommy walked and Elizabeth and Ashley came along for the ride!

Oh...and, for the record, if Elizabeth were writing this, she would want you to know...
"The fountains are ON!"

Whirlwind Vacation: Part 1-B

As previously posted, we had a great time at the baptism! But that was only a small portion of our Houston visit! We also enjoyed spending time with

Grams...














And Grandpa...

And Grandma...















And Grammy & Pop-Pop...

Whirlwind Vacation: Part 1-A

We are on a mission to get Ashley caught up with Elizabeth on total number of flights taken by the time she is one year old! ;-) It won't be easy to break E's record...but we decided to give it a try!


First up...trip to Texas! Here, we celebrated Ashley's baptism at Memorial Drive United Methodist Church (MDUMC for those of you in the know). We were so thrilled to see our family and friends join us for this special occasion!


We are happy to report that Ashley made it through the service with no crying (hooray!) And Elizabeth was also quiet the whole time we were up at the altar (about 4 minutes--which is probably some sort of record for our little 2-year-old chatterbox!) ;-)

Too Sentimental?

Lately, Peter has been complaining that my blog posts over the past few months have been far too sentimental for his taste. ;-) He misses the comical, snarky blog entries of old, so I have vowed to return to more light-hearted, witty commentary in future posts.

However, if I am going to leave behind this era of sappiness, I feel that it's only fitting that I do so with a sentimental send-off!
So, here is a a video/slide show I made that I have titled simply, "Sisters"! Enjoy!

Summer Sledding!

We bought this sledding disc in December so that we could bundle Elizabeth up in her snowsuit, coat, hat, and mittens, and tug her around the yard in the snow!

And...it was a mild hit in the winter, but it's no match for the fun that Elizabeth has in it NOW! Check it out! :-)

WHOO-HOO!

That's How I Roll...

Ashley's advice to all: If ya gotta ride...ride in style!

Don't we all wish we could travel like this? Super-comfy head support, plush seat-belt straps, tucked snuggly into our seats with a soft, warm blanket...aaaaahhhh!

Rub-a-Dub-Dub...

...look who's in the tub!

It's ASHLEY!




And, hey Mikey, she LIKES it!

A Castle?...in Michigan??

WHO KNEW?!?!
But here is a picture to prove it!

Earlier today, we drove to Owosso, Michigan (about 30 miles north of us) to check out the Kolache Kitchen (good idea...but it was closed for Memorial Day...as were most of the non-chain businesses in the town of 15,713 people).



During our mini-tour, we stopped at Hardees for lunch (that's Carl's Jr. to you Californians who may be reading this blog!), and then went for a brief stroll through a historic downtown Owosso park to take in a view of the river.

While we were there, Elizabeth got a kick out of watching some teenage locals kayak over a very small dam in the river!




We were also able to get a closer look at the famous—or, in our case, the completely-unbeknownst-to-us-until-today—Curwood Castle. Apparently, it's named after a qwerky author whose short stories are the basis for a few Hollywood films.



Creepy Curwood Fact: Oddly enough, the guy was bitten by a spider, and, when it did not result in his immediate transformation into Spiderman, apparently, it caused his death. Strange, but reportedly true story!

Sisterly Love?

Well...we like to call it that, anyway.

But, let's be honest, it's mostly a series of "awkward turtle" moments that are created when we arrange artificial bonding opportunities in front of the camera!



Sometimes, it results in some precious photos!

But, more often than not, we end up with one or both of them looking at us like we are insane!





Enjoy!

Chocolate Bunnies!

Elizabeth: Happy Easter!


Bunny: What???


Elizabeth: HAPPY EASTER!!!!!!!

Okay, even though this picture is a little outdated, that joke never gets old to me!

Eyelashes

I don't have anything witty to say about this one...I just like how this picture shows Elizabeth's ridiculously long eyelashes. :-)

"My Kind of Town...

Chicago is..."

At least, that seemed to be Elizabeth's take on it!

We traveled (by car) to Chicago a few weeks ago and Elizabeth just couldn't stop talking about it (before, during, or since!)..."Are we going to a HOTEL in Chicago!?", "Are we IN a HOTEL in Chicago?!", "Did you stay at a HOTEL in Chicago?!?" LOL

Anyway, a few highlights of our trip: Elizabeth and Daddy went for a swim in the indoor pool! (3 times!), we saw the Santa Monica SuperLeague Rugby team take on the Chicago Lions (and ALMOST win!), we met up with Megan and Tim for brunch at a yummy restaurant just a block from Harpo Studios!, and we dined at Cheesecake Factory (delicious crabcakes as always!) on Friday night and ordered in some fantastic Chicago-Style Deep Dish pizza from Giordano's Pizza on Saturday!



Both girls were terrific car travelers (hooray!)...and all four of us in one room for two nights...well, let's just say that it was an experience! haha!

Sleep-a-pot-a-mus!

This is what happens when you wear a little girl out from too much fun and activity!

E fell asleep in the car on the way home (seemed like she was mid-sentence!)...and didn't stir even a little bit when Daddy picked her up out of the car seat to bring her inside. As you can see...she is ZONKED! Complete with "Mo" in her mouth and her hand still stuck inside her "snack trap"—mid-snack!

Things That Make Me Smile on Mother's Day!...

Resemblance?

I think, yes!

Here is Elizabeth at about 3 weeks and Ashley at 5 weeks.

Just for Pop-Pop

We here at the Purple & Pickle Blog would never want to be accused of unfair bias toward the Grandmothers.

So, in an effort to be more inclusive in our praise and appreciation of the male influence on our dear daughters...we are now taking requests!

First up...some charming pictures of Pop-Pop with his granddaughters!

And here are a few of E and A with Grandpa as well!

Lots of hugs and kisses to the Pop-Pop and Grandpa--who always know how to make our girls feel special and loved!

Portrait Preview

So...we finally made it to the professional portrait studio to have pictures taken of the girls! We think they turned out beautifully (and, of course, Mom couldn't resist buying too many photos!). And to the grandparents...hard copies are in the mail for Mothers' Day...but here is a preview of some of our favorites!

Elizabeth Katherine at nearly 2 1/2 years and Ashley Rose at 7 weeks!

Happy Easter!

Wishing all of our family and friends a very Happy Easter from the four of us!