Not babies anymore.....

They really aren't babies anymore.  Sometimes I am telling other people this fact.  But other times I am trying to tell myself.  I can't believe that they will be THREE in just a few months!  Where has the time gone?

Today, Daddy took Clark for another big-boy haircut.  Daddy was so proud because Clark sat by himself in the chair and was very happy throughout the whole process.  (I'm sure that the green lollipop helped out just a little.)

Later on, I was fixing dinner and trying to use up some leftovers for the kids.  This may sound mundane to many people, but when I look back at this years from now, I might wonder what it was that they were eating.....

 The weird yellow bowl is actually a "salad" (Romaine lettuce, cucumbers and some organic raspberry vinagrette that they seem to like).  Emma is still not a fan of the salad, but will often eat the cukes.  Kendall was dipping her chicken pieces in the mashed potatoes and licking them off.  I also tried making some carrots in the microwave steamer and adding some brown sugar and a little dab of butter.  These were from the other day and they sort of shriveled up so the kids didn't even touch them.  Bummer!  And they were not remotely interested in the rice and veggies.  Oh well.  Try, try again!  Dessert was fruit salad which is always a hit!

 Please try to forgive the penguin/winter-themed PJs, but they fit and are super-soft, so he is wearing them.  And "penguin" is a good word to work on since it's sort of tough to say.  Notice how interested he is in his reflection?  And Daddy or Uncle Stevie drew the happy face on his hand.  Kendall noticed this during their snack break and both girls had to get their own happy faces drawn later.

 Here is Kendall during snack time, showing off her pretty nails.  There is a story here because the bottle fell out of my pocket after I did the girls' nails and I was unaware of this event.  When Uncle Stevie came over, he commented on Clark pretending to paint his toes.  I was concerned whether he was really pretending or painting and ran to check.  Yup.  He and Kendall were painting.  It was E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E.  The good news?  It is Piggy Paint (check them out here: http://www.piggypaint.com/), so it is safe for the kids.   Good thing since it was on their clothes, the floor, their hands, feet and faces.  Ugh!  What a mess!  But I guess it was a learning experience for all of us.

I asked them all to give me cheesy smiles and this was Emma's response (see above).

It's hard to see it, but they are saying "Cheers!" per Uncle Stevie's tutoring just moments before I took the picture.  Funny!

I asked the girls to show me their pretty fingers and Kendall posed them on the table.  Meanwhile, Emma held them up, but aimed in the wrong direction.  Oops.  She meant well.

So my babies aren't really babies.  They are becoming "older toddlers" actually.  They have painted toes and fingers (even Clark at this point).  They eat salads when we go out to dinner.  They have opinions (not my favorite developmental milestone to date).  But they also say "I love you" and sing "Jesus Loves Me."  They light up when Daddy comes home and say something like "Daddy came back home!" (Do they know something that I don't?)  They are never short on passion, whether it is expressed as happy, sad, excited or frustrated. 

I have big plans for them on Saturday, so I hope to have some fun pictures to share tomorrow evening!