Dads and Donuts!

It was Dads and Donuts at school today and the girls were out of bed screaming about it before Matt and I were even awake this morning. They were SO, SO excited (I can't tell you how excited they were) to have Daddy take them to school and to get to share donuts with him in the classroom.  It was so precious...they love their Daddy so much!
 It's a cold, yucky day here in Jacksonville (not as cold and yucky as other places...at least we don't have snow!) but it supposed to be back up in the 70's by the weekend. Phew! Think we're all officially Southerners now...we do NOT like this cold weather! Hope to have lots more posts and updates once the weather clears up a bit...we've been spending time just playing and reading and having fun at home! Hope everyone is staying safe and warm!

OUR FIRST TRIP TO DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!

We got back last night from the most wonderful time at Disney World! We left home on Saturday morning and were at Disney by 11ish. We were so lucky that we were able to meet Aunt Laurie (Laurlee), Uncle Nathan and Cooper there! Laurie ran the Disney Half Marathon that morning (correction....she WON the Disney Half Marathon that morning) AND it was Cooper's birthday! So much fun! Not only was it Reagan and Riley's first trip to Disney, but it was Matt's first ever trip too. It far exceeded any and all expectations that he had and made me fall in love with Disney all over again! Laurie and I were so lucky that growing up our grandparents (GiGi and Grandpa) lived in Orlando...so every vacation we ever spent we were at Disney. We grew up knowing the parks like they were our playground and always loved them so much. So it was especially fun that Laurie and I got to take our kids there together! So.....more about the trip! (This may be a SUPER long post...just a warning! but I want to include everything so that we'll always be able to look back and remember their first time at Disney!). I'll do it by days.....

Day One- DISNEY WORLD (Saturday, January 11th)-

Here we are before walking in to the park!

We met up with everyone for lunch right when we got there. The girls were already excited before we'd ridden any rides or seen any princesses because we'd gotten to ride the Monorail into the park and they thought that was just the coolest. (They actually even loved the bus ride from our hotel too!). After lunch, the very first thing we did was the teacups. The girls laughed and laughed and laughed (so did we). What a perfect way to kick off our Disney trip!  I'd say they were a HUGE hit....what do you think?

From there the dads took the kids on the Buzz Lightyear ride (from their favorite movie, TOY STORY) and they loved it! (The dads and the kids!). Then we went on to Dumbo and the girls thought that it was just the coolest ever that they could "fly" Dumbo up and down. As soon as it was over, Riley wanted to do it again! (We did...just not that day).

I have to mention at this point that it was crowded at Disney...but it wasn't terrible and I don't think we EVER waited in line for more than 5 minutes for anything. We did the Fast Passes for most everything but even the rides that we didn't, we had no problems getting right in. It was perfect. Oh...and the weather...all three days we were there was absolutely the best. 80 and sunny. Amazing.
Back to Day One....
We took the girls on their very first roller coaster called Goofy's Barnstormer. I'd read about this one before we went to Disney that some kids would be terrified but they all wanted to try it! They were a little scared while we were on it but once we were done they talked about it a lot and wanted to go on it again! Go figure. Right around this time the girls (and Cooper!) were all getting pretty tired so we decided to just walk them around the park for a while to see if they'd fall asleep. It took about 35 seconds.

When the girls woke up, we took them to meet Cinderella. It was honestly the highlight of my whole trip to see their faces. They were just in awe of her. Reagan couldn't even talk...we've never seen her that way before. It was hilarious. She was so overwhelmed! Cinderella was perfect and so sweet. She grabbed both girl's hands and said "Hello, Your Majesties, will you come with me?" The girls went straight with her and let us take pictures. It was the best ever and they've talked about it nonstop.

After this we met back up with Cooper and Aunt Laurlee and Uncle Nathan and rode on the Ariel Under the Sea ride. The girls loved everything about it except for Ursula the SeaWitch. She was "not nice!" as the girls pointed out. When this was over we decided to head out as we had early dinner reservations for a restaurant at Downtown Disney called the T-Rex Restaurant. Before we left, we were able to see the Disney Parade which the girls (especially Riley) loved! It was so cute and the music was great! Cooper led the girls around and took such good care of them on their first day there!

The T-Rex restaurant was definitely an experience! There are dinosaurs all over the restaurant that move and roar and there is meteor light show every 20 minutes or so. The girls loved everything about it except for the light show...it was a little scary! We got to celebrate Cooper's birthday with a special birthday treat too! It was such an amazing day...we were all asleep by 9!

Day 2-Animal Kingdom! (Sunday, January 12th)-
We decided to take the kids to Animal Kingdom the second day which was such a great decision. Not only did they love it, but it was a little more lowkey and relaxed than the Magic Kingdom so it was kind of a nice change of pace! We got there early and were some of the first people to take the Safari ride through the park. It was incredible. We got to be up close to just about any animal from Africa that you can possibly think of and then some. The kids loved it. (Don't have many pictures as we were trying to take it all in!). After that we went and rode the Dinosaur ride (think DUMBO but with Dinosaurs) and the kids thought it was so fun!

Then we took the kids to do a meet and greet with MINNIE and MICKEY MOUSE! They were so excited. These pictures absolutely will not do it justice at all, but you'll just have to trust me when I tell you how excited Reagan and Riley were. They went right up to them, gave them big hugs and kisses and high fives and went back for more. Even Minnie Mouse put her hand over her heart at one point because it was just so sweet how obviously in love with Minnie and Mickey they were. So awesome!

 We then went back and played games in the Dinosaur land...they had carnival type games and all 3 kids won a stuffed animal (as if we need anymore!!)! They thought it was just the coolest ever. Then they played in the dinosaur playland (a HUGE playground type thing) and it was amazing. They were exhausted after that so we decided to do naps again and this time we found a "quiet" spot and propped the umbrella strollers up a bit and they took great naps! (Here is Reagan loving on Cooper before naptime!)!

 Asleep-day two!

Once the girls woke up it was almost time for the Animal Kingdom Parade to begin, so we found our spots and the girls waited for the parade with a lollipop. They met a sweet little friend named Liam and shared a lollipop with him too. The parade was so fun and the girls clapped and danced and gave high fives to the characters as they went by. They were most excited to see Pluto! Here we are waiting for the parade...

After the parade we headed back to the hotel to clean up for dinner. I was so excited about our dinner plans for Sunday night because we decided to take the kids to Benihana (it was acutally in our hotel). I knew they'd think it was fun to see the chefs cook at the table, but it brought back such awesome memories of our trips to Disney/Orlando to see our Grandparents because Laurie and I remember that they used to take us to this same restaurant. I honestly don't think it's changed a bit...it was still great food and the kids thought it was fun. They even sang to Cooper for his birthday! (one day late....) I wish our kids would always sit still like this at a restaurant! And before we went in, we went to the hotel lobby bar and got the girls their very first ever Shirley Temple. They were not impressed! They didn't like the bubbles (carbonation!). It was hilarious...I thought they'd think they were the best ever, and they each took one sip and wanted something else.

What a fun way to end our time with Aunt Laurlee, Uncle Nathan and Cooper! They had to leave in the morning so we said our goodbyes and went to sleep (we made it to 8:30 this night!).

Day Three- Disney World again! (January 13th)-
We got up and checked out of the hotel and drove ourselves over to the Magic Kingdom. It amazed both of us the whole time we were there just how smoothly everything went. It was so easy and the traffic wasn't bad at all. We parked the car and hopped right onto the Monorail (yes, girls loved it again!). My suggestion to anyone ever going to Disney is to hit it on a Monday in January. It was ridiculous. We didn't get one Fast Pass the entire morning and never waited in a line. It was so fun! We took the girls on It's a Small World first....and Matt and I both agree that it was probably the girl's favorite thing that they did (they might not say so). They were singing and clapping and pointing at everything and just loved it so much. (Matt says it was his favorite too). We then did the Winnie the Pooh ride and the Teacups again and then went to the Speedway! Matt and Reagan got a race car and Riley and I got our own. It was so much fun! Riley was a very serious driver and Matt said that Reagan just giggled the entire time. Again, I don't have videos and pictures of a lot of things we did there as we really wanted to be present and just enjoy watching the girls having fun! But here is a video from before we started going...

We then rode Dumbo again and believe it or not, the girls begged to go back on the Goofy's Barnstormer roller coaster. There wasn't a line so we said okay. They acted super excited until we got on it and then they were both scared again. Ha! We'll know for next time!
The last thing we did before we left was watch the performance at Cinderella's Castle. The girls were just in heaven and when Cinderella came out and started dancing they couldn't stop smiling. It was the perfect, perfect ending to a magical trip. It really was....I know I'm making it sound stress free and easy breezy....but it honestly was! We had such a great time I can't wait to take the girls back again. They woke up this morning asking where we were going today. Ha! Thank goodness we live close! (It took about 2 hours and 15 minutes from Disney to our front door). We are so lucky!

Soccer STARS!!!!

The girls had their first ever soccer practice today! They were so excited all day long and were bouncing off of the walls until it was time to leave for "practice"! It's being organized by some older soccer players in the neighborhood (some high school aged girls) and there were about 8 little kids there. (Reagan and Riley and their friend Kiely were the youngest...but not by too much, as most kids were 3 and 4). The true soccer leagues don't start until 3 years old...this is the PERFECT introduction! It was adorable and fun and the girls had an absolute ball. It was about as chaotic as you would imagine a kid's first soccer practice might be, but they didn't care and didn't want to leave when it was over. Success!!!!! I'm thrilled and we can't wait until next week to go back to practice!

Our little BIG girls

Reagan and Riley are officially in big girl beds! (well, they're IN them right now...it's only 8:13, so they've been in them for 13 minutes and so far, so good). I can't tell you the last time that I saw these two so excited about something as they were about their big girl beds. (Thank you Nana and BopBop!!!)
They arrived 2 days ago, but they forgot to deliver the mattresses, so the boxes have been in our dining room until this afternoon. The men came right as I got home from picking the girls up from school so they got to see them being set up and as soon as the men left, I put the sheets on and the girls were just squealing with excitement. They took their naps in them this afternoon and I'm serious when I tell you this...they took a 2 hour nap which hasn't happened in probably a year. Maybe longer. I think I went in to check on them about 7 times (feel like I'm revisiting the newborn times again!) just because I couldn't believe that they were STILL sleeping in the beds and I was sure they were suffocating in the sheets or something else. (yes, I'm crazy).
I was in tears last night as Matt and I got into bed thinking that it was their last night in cribs. How did this happen so fast!!!!????!!! I remember the switch from the little Fisher Price rockers (that we had in our bedroom for their first 5 weeks) to their cribs...I remember it like it was just yesterday! And now here we are and my babies are sleeping in big girl beds already. Sigh. Everyone always says to enjoy every moment when they're little because it just goes by so fast...and I'll be honest, I really haven't felt that way until recently. And now there are little things hitting me every day. BUT...what amazing little ladies we have. We are so blessed. I'm not expecting a very good night sleep tonight. I'm anticipating that I'll be up to check on them a lot...and I'm sure, based on the way they've surprised me every time before, that they'll be perfectly fine and I'll just walk into their rooms and watch them sleeping.  Only this time, I'll be able to bend down and kiss them on their little heads, as I haven't been able to reach down when they're in their cribs.  So...I guess, this change isn't all bad. Bittersweet might be a better word. I'll keep you posted on how they do. (Update...it's now 8:22 and they're still quiet!)! (also...I still have a little work to do on their rooms, but wanted you to see the new beds on the very first day they're here!!) And the girls wanted to read books, sing Twinkle Twinkle and say prayers together tonight in Riley's bed and have requested that tomorrow night they cuddle in Reagan's bed to do the same. Love the new routine!!!!

Riley's new big girl bed (you can't see but her big pink pillow says RILEY)

Reagan's new big girl bed (Her big blue pillow says Reagan in hot pink!)

Reagan getting ready for bed tonight (notice how many pillows I have stuffed on the floor in case she falls out!!)!

Riley pretending to be asleep for my picture. (Again...note the pillows on the ground to cushion the blow, just in case!)!

 The new nighttime routine...same routine, different location. Makes my heart happy! (not my knees).

*********** Morning after update************
Girls slept so well...not a peep and stayed in their beds all night long! They even called for us to come and get them in the morning instead of hopping down and coming in to see us in our room (we'll see how long it takes for them to realize that they can do that.)! YAY!

It didn't help but they sure are cute!

The girls put on their OSU cheerleading outfits from Uncle Ron and Aunt Conni for the big game on Friday night. They were prancing and dancing all around the house yelling "GO Ohio State!" and "GO BUCKEYES!!!"! Matt was in heaven. It was a great game but Clemson beat the Buckeyes fair and square! The funniest part of this night was when we were saying our prayers before bed, I had just finished and Riley pipes up with "And GOD BLESS OHIO STATE!"! Matt and I laughed out loud...too funny! (they've prayed for the Browns before too...God must not be an Ohio Sports fan! which is actually pretty obvious if you think about it!)!

BopBop

BopBop can make these two laugh like no one else can....this Christmas he would sit in his chair in the kitchen and turn them upside down and they would take turns just laughing hysterically.  Riley cracks me up almost as much as Reagan in this video. And Dad is so patient with these two, as they want to be near him, on him, around him, somewhere close to him at all times. So funny!!!!

2014 off to a great start....

Today was the first day of 2014 and....so far, so good! It was a rainy, rainy day here in Jacksonville so we stayed in and built forts, had some dance parties and waited around for the main event....The Rose Bowl! We were definitely cheering for the Spartans since Nana and BopBop both went there and so did most of the Sturgell clan! Reagan and Riley's first song that they really ever showed any response to was the MSU Fight Song...think it's even on here on the blog somewhere, way back in the beginning, but shows that the girls will always have a bit of Sparty in them (unless they're playing the Buckeyes in which case they bleed Scarlett and Gray). They'll be sporting their OSU cheerleading gear on Friday night (unfortunately, they'll be asleep by kickoff and we'll be trying with all of our might to stay up!)! Go Buckeyes!
We gave the girls early baths today so that they could "watch" the game with us and they wanted to put their pjs on, even though it was around 4:30.  Silly girls. They definitely weren't into watching the game. Instead they started giving each other "raspberries" or "zerberts" or whatever you call them....I don't know but they had Matt and I laughing so hard we had to leave the room. Matt caught it on video from the kitchen....best start to a new year that I can remember, even though it was one stuck inside of the house! Hope you're all off to a great 2014 too!!!!

Happy New Year!!!!!

One of my very best friends, Angie and her husband David (and precious children, Hannah and Johnathan) called me a couple of weeks ago with the news that they are likely moving to Ponte Vedra Beach. I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am about this news and we are crossing our fingers and saying our prayers that everything works out just as it should! They came to town to househunt the past few days which meant that they would be here for New Year's Eve! They stayed with us for a few days and the kids all had a great time together (Hannah and Johnathan were SO patient with R and R!! and took such good care of them! I loved seeing them all together!). We took them to a lot of our favorite spots and on New Year's Eve we went to the beach. It wasn't exactly warm....but we made the most of it and realized that David is a Master at shark tooth hunting...he found a TON! So fun. That night we cooked in and everyone participated in a marching band. I'm pretty sure you can hear me just dying laughing in this video, and if not, just know that I was. How times have changed! We didn't make it up until midnight, but it was such a great end to an amazing year and we are so excited for 2014 and all of the wonderful things that we know are in store for us! Happy New Year, everyone! We hope that 2014 is full of happy memories, good health and tons and tons of love and FUN! xoxoxo

A Very Happy Anniversary

Matt and I were able to spend our anniversary where we got married...Kiawah! Such a perfect and beautiful place to be and we had our girlies with us! Nana and BopBop were generous/kind/stupid enough to agree to watch the girls for us so that we could enjoy and afternoon and evening together out without them. It was so nice to have a nice, quiet dinner and to have nice, quiet conversations and be able to concentrate on cutting only my food and not anyone else's for a change! We had dinner at the Ocean Room at The Sanctuary...it's the gorgeous hotel where we spent our wedding night and our first few anniversaries (BK...before kids)! It was a great night and we were actually excited to get back to the house to see our precious girls! We are immeasurably blessed!!!!

 At dinner...we had the first reservation and were the only ones in the restaurant besides the wait staff. Ha!!!!

The girls at The Sanctuary the day before. Too cute for words!

Horses!

Nana told the girls that they could go and see a bunch of horses and she even bought a whole bag of carrots so that we could feed them if we saw some...so they were SUPER excited about it! Turns out, there is an Equestrian center in between Kiawah and Seabrook Islands.  I've probably driven by it a million and a half times before, but I've never paid it any attention until we took the girls. It was incredible. Not only was it a beautiful space, but the horses were gorgeous and came RIGHT to the girls. They each got to feed them, pet them and they were just so excited about it. It was too cute. There were people getting some riding/jumping lessons and the girls liked watching them and then we took them to the stables to see where the horses sleep. They even got to see the vans that the horses travel in when traveling around. They had such a fun time and are already asking to go back! Can't wait!!!!

Fishing with BopBop

BopBop gave both of the girls their very own fishing rods for Christmas! What a perfect gift from him as much as he loves to fish! It wasn't exactly tropical this Christmas in Kiawah, but it was nice enough for BopBop to take his girls out to his dock to teach them how to use their rods. Reagan was REALLY into it...Riley wasn't quite was excited but since we've been home has talked about it almost every day, so who knows?!?! I would love it if they would go fishing with their BopBop when they go to Kiawah. I used to love to go fishing with him when I was younger....what a perfect, special gift for them (and for me to watch). Love you, Dad!!!!

 

 

Christmas Morning 2013

"SANTA CAME, SANTA CAME, SANTA CAME!!!!!"  The kids were so excited/overwhelmed Christmas morning it was the best morning ever. Christmas has and always will be my favorite holiday ever and now it's even more special to see Reagan and Riley experience the joy and excitement of Christmas! The only two things that the girls really "asked" Santa for were a Sit and Spin and a Scooter ("a blue, princess scooter with sparkly wheels" according to Reagan) and you will NOT believe this...but Santa brought them BOTH of those things and so much more!!!! How does he do that!!!???!!! They were so excited by everything they opened...even the small things in their stockings like a pack of M and M's or a bouncy ball that it took about 5 hours to open all of the presents because they had to play with every single thing once it was opened! They loved their Doc McStuffins Doctor Kit and all of their dress up clothes from Aunt Laurlee. Reagan LOVED dressing up like the hairdresser and Riley loved being the waitress. (We're hoping they'll start dreaming a big bigger as they get older, but.....as long as they're happy?!??!). Here are some videos from Christmas morning! We missed all of our family and friends that weren't able to be with us but know that we had you in our hearts and I hope these videos make you smile like they made us smile too!

Getting ready for Santa!

Nana Mimi gave Cooper, Reagan and Riley all new Christmas PJs to wear and they loved them. They were all so excited for Santa to come I couldn't imagine that they'd ever get to sleep...but after we set out Santa's milk, cookies and carrots for the reindeer, and sprinkled the special reindeer food in the grass that the girls had made at school (a bag full of cheerios and glitter!) ...they were ready to say goodnight! They had a million questions before bed about what was going to happen and how we'd know if Santa came and what would happen if he was too full to eat their cookies, etc....but once they put their precious little heads on the pillows, they were OUT!

Christmas Eve Part One

Our Christmas Eve kicked off in Hilton Head with a trip to GiGi and Grandpa's house! We all met at Truffle's restaurant, where GiGi had planned a special lunch in a private room for everyone. It was absolutely perfect and she thought of everything! Everyone had a special little gift at their seat and the food was amazing. It was a great lunch and then we went back to their house and opened presents and had dessert! The girls were given such special and thoughtful gifts...music boxes with their names on them that play their favorite song (Twinkle,Twinkle), dollies with their names on them that look just like each girl! Ryan and Natasha even gave the girls the cutest Christmas doggies...they love to cuddle with them. And the best of all...Ohio State Cheerleader outfits from Ron and Conni! Matt was almost as excited as the girls were. They look adorable in them...will post a picture of them in them at another time as I haven't had a chance to capture it yet. They will DEFINITELY be sporting them on Friday night! Go Buckeyes!
It was such a special time, as the whole family was able to be together...GiGi and Grandpa, Ron, Conni, Ryan and Natasha, Laurie, Nathan and Cooper, Nana, BopBop, and our family too. It was so fun and the girls had a blast. We were all a little nervous about how the kids were going to behave because we knew how excited they were for Santa's big visit later that night...but they were awesome and did so well. It was such a special day and we have so many great memories that we made! Here are a few pictures from the day...the group pictures leave a bit to be desired but at least you can tell that we were all there!!!!