The Bennetts

More fun at Aunt Jessie's

2012-02-12T17:46:00.000-08:00

My girls love hanging out at Aunt Jessie's house. Here are some more pictures of a fun day at her house....

and this will be Makenzie's big girl bed when we decide to move her to it. We decided to all try it out. Karley our neighbor gave it to us when she got another big girl bed.

Bath time fun at Aunt Jessie's

2012-02-04T13:25:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago we were still at my sister's house when it was close to bath time. She gladly wanted to help give the girls a bath and offered to throw in a little extra fun by making it a bubble bath! Here are some pictures from the fun...

Stacy's visit and gymnastics

2012-01-31T15:50:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, my college roommate Stacy came to stay with us. The girls had a really good time getting to play with her. We even tried out some gymnastics with the girls. Here are some pictures of both...

Rylee's bridge...

Makenzie's bridge...

snuggling in bed with Stacy and her snuggie...

Then on Sunday we went to our other roommate, Sarah's little boy Tyler's 3rd birthday party. Here are a couple pictures from the party...

There's a group one I can't get to post..I'll have to post it later.

We had a really fun time!

The Children's Museum

2012-01-18T17:35:00.000-08:00

My grandmother got a couple of free passes to the children's museum, so my mom and I took the girls there for a few hours one morning. I must say they thoroughly enjoyed themselves! It's a pretty neat place to go too! Here are a few pictures...

Aunt Jessie and Uncle Daniel

2012-01-10T17:54:00.000-08:00

Just wanted my loving sweet sister and brother in law to know that they really did spend some of Christmas with us. Sorry you guys weren't in the first pictures! Know that we all love you very much! (So much so that you get your own blog post!)

Daniel opening Makenzie's Dora doll

the girls wearing their hats from Jessie and Daniel

and Makenzie modeling Rylee's shoes from Jessie and Daniel

We really do love you guys lots, Aunt Jessie and Uncle Daniel!

Merry Christmas!

2012-01-06T16:59:00.000-08:00

Sorry I'm a little far behind...I've been told that my blog is a joke so I'm going to have to work to make it not that way. We had a wonderful Christmas! Both Dave's parents and brother and sister and law were able to come into town this year for Christmas to spend time with us. The girls loved have all the family together! Here are some pictures from Christmas morning.

Checking out what Santa brought!

Dora!

Makenzie wanted to try on her new panties right away...and wore them that way for the rest of the morning!

new babies!

Kenzie's new baby

trying out the new tent with Grandma

and again

relaxing with Grandpa

Checking out Karley and Nate's new Christmas toy

and again

loving on Grandpa!

dressing her baby...they got new diapers and have put them on 1000 times!

love you Grandma and Grandpa

Then Christmas with my mom's side of the family was celebrated at my Aunt Gwen's house. A definate good time was had by all!

Love you Nana and Pa

Ashely Glen and Barrett

opening presents

Pa and Makenzie's game.....every time we tried to take a picture they held up their pillows! Aren't they cute!

hanging out

with the Winters gang

Visiting Santa

2011-12-11T05:53:00.000-08:00

Rylee preschool had a brunch with Santa last Saturday. We took the girls up there to see what they thought of Santa. We talked a lot about sitting on his lap and telling him what you want for Christmas before we went so when we got there both girls went immediately and sat on his lap! And there were no tears! Then they both wanted to go back a 2nd time too! I'd call this year a success with Santa! Here's a picture of the girls with Santa.

Then I wanted to get a couple of pictures of the girls with our tree since I've done that in years past so here are those pictures.

And yesterday Rylee went to our neighbor's birthday party and Makenzie stayed home with Daddy since it was an outside party and very cold yesterday. Makenzie and Dave went to Walmart and did a little shopping. Here's what Dave came back with...

matching pajamas for the girls!

Thanksgiving

2011-12-03T16:08:00.000-08:00

Sorry I am behind again...its so hard to keep caught up! Anyways here are some pictures of our family from our Thanksgiving get together at my Mom and Dad's. We had a really great time!

Rylee and Uncle Daniel

Makenzie

our attempts at a family picture....

The whole family

The kids

The girls

Granny and the girls

wheelbarrow

Then of course Makenzie had to join in too

kisses for Pa

Fun with leaves

Pictures

2011-11-28T17:09:00.000-08:00

We had some professional pictures made a couple weeks ago. Here are some trials at home...

Then a couple of the girls playing at home...

Halloween

2011-11-07T03:28:00.000-08:00

Sorry I'm a little late but things can get kinda crazy busy in the Bennett household! The girls got to do a lot of fun activities for Halloween! On Thursday, they go to our local library where a girl reads them a book and they play a few games related to the book and then make a craft related to it all too. On Halloween Thursday all the kids got to wear their costumes! Here are the girls ready to go!

Then on Saturday we went to Rylee's preschool for their trunk or treat. It was very cold and very crowded so we didn't stay long but the girls seemed to have a good time anyways.

Then Sunday Jessie's church had a Fall Festival/Trunk or Treat that she invited us to. The girls really had fun playing some of the games they had set up. Then they took us around the church grounds on a hay ride. We really had a lot of fun!

Then Monday the girls finally got to go trick or treating! Rylee LOVED it! Makenzie was really cute and would stick her bucket out and say treat!

with Haven and Gracelyn

After all that I think we are Halloweened out!

Pumpkin Patch

2011-11-01T02:49:00.001-07:00

We took our annual visit to our local pumpkin patch to pick out a pumpkin. The girls had a blast running around and looking at all the pumpkins. Here are some pictures...

Hayride

2011-10-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

This past week Rylee's school did a hayride for all the kids. Aunt Jessie came and went with the girls and I. It was really cold! But we had a lot of fun! Then Aunt Jessie spoiled the girls by taking them for their first time to watch doughnuts be made at Krispy Kreme and to get a sweet treat! It was a fun day! Here are some pictures...

Marleigh, Jessie, Makenzie and Rylee

Beautiful weather

2011-10-27T16:36:00.000-07:00

Our weather right now is really gorgeous! In the mornings it a little chilly but by the afternoons it has warmed up perfectly and leaves just enough time for some much needed sunshine at Nana's! Here are some pictures of the girls playing at my mom's house this week...

and a silly hat picture of me and the girls

10 year reunion

2011-10-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

My high school had our 10 year high school reunion a couple weekends ago. They had a dinner and dance in the evening for the adults only; but in the morning had a picnic at a local park for the families with kids. We went and had a good time! We played on the playground and fed the ducks (who were VERY used to being fed and came right up to you for the bread. It scared both kids since the ducks would take the bread right out of your hands if you didn't watch!) Here are some pictures....

sliding down the slide with Mommy

Rylee, Makenzie and Baylin, who is also in Rylee's preschool class (funny story- Rylee didn't want to talk much to him at first and Baylin said "What in the world? Rylee is my best friend in the whole world and she won't even talk to me? I guess the cat must have her tongue!)

The Bennetts

feeding the ducks

she wanted to feed them from "far away"...my little girl isn't the braviest sometimes

And this is a picture I forgot to post a while back from when Sarah and Tyler came to some yard sales with us

Dixie Classic Fair!

2011-10-04T10:45:00.000-07:00

Fall is definately one of my favorite times of the year, and one of the main reasons is because that means it is fair time! This year, Dave's mom was in town helping to watch the girls so she was able to come along too. The weather changed that day though and got really cold that night. I didn't prepare for that and we all got cold in our outfits so we didn't get to stay quite as long as we might would have but still had a really good time. Here are some pictures....

First day of Preschool

2011-09-10T10:33:00.000-07:00

We decided that Rylee needed a little more interaction with some other children and for my mom to be able to have a little one on one time with Makenzie, so we started Rylee in a 2 day a week preschool program. Wednesday was her first day of it. She was really excited and seemed to have a really good time. There were no tears from either mommy or Rylee! Here's some pictures...

All ready to go

in her classroom

by her coatrack

and with her teacher and new friends!

Lake Day

2011-09-07T17:40:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Jessie and Daniel invited us to spend a day at the lake with them. Both girls had a really great time! They both even got to try a little tubing too. Here's the pictures....

Girls Night

2011-09-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

We found some pictures on my sister's camera from a night in July, right about Dave's birthday when Jessie invited us to have a girl's night. We gave Dave a peaceful night to himself and I took Rylee and Makenzie and we joined my mom and Carol (Jessie's mother-in-law) for the night. We ate dinner and played and even got to pick some things out of the garden to eat! Here are the pictures.

Take 1...

Take 2

playing Hide and Seek

Riding bikes

2011-08-24T16:18:00.000-07:00

Makenzie has gotten pretty good at riding some of the toys without pedaling. Here are a couple of videos of her riding some toys.

Michigan part 2

2011-08-19T16:59:00.001-07:00

We got to do some pretty fun things with the girls. The first thing was a dune ride. Rylee didn't like it at first so Makenzie rubbed her face telling her "shhhhh" trying to comfort her. It was so cute. Here are some pictures from that.

Then we took the girls to a cute pottery place to attempt to paint. Makenzie did really good for about the first 5 minutes and then wanted to go play in the play area. Rylee who wanted to paint a snowman lasted a little bit longer. I'd say they both had a lot of fun!

Grandma and Grandpa let Mommy and Daddy have a night out for dinner. They took the girls out for ice cream after dinner.

There was also a nearby playground that we tried out..

and the beach where we went to play in the sand

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for a fun visit!

Michigan visit Part 1

2011-08-16T18:03:00.000-07:00

Last week we got to spend the whole week visiting Dave's parents in Michigan. The bad part was we caught a stomach bug the day we fly there and took it with us to share. But after a few days of everyone hanging over the commode we all got back to our normal selves and had alot of fun! Adam and Jessica, Dave's brother and sister in law actually got to visit from Ohio too so the girls had alot of fun playing with them too. Here are some pictures...

more photos to come soon...

Puppies

2011-08-01T03:52:00.000-07:00

My best friend Brooke's dog had a litter of puppies a couple of weeks ago. We have been meaning to go see her and her husband so what better time then when they have puppies! The girls loved the dogs! Rylee wanted to hold all of them and when Brooke showed her how to pick them up, she constantly picked each one up. There were 5 very cute little puppies. Makenzie wanted to be just like her big sister but wasn't quite big enough to hold them so she pretty much just screamed at all the puppies until we would pick them up for her. Then she wanted to hug and love all over them. Maybe one day when they're a little older and can truly help out we'll get a dog since they seem to love them so much.

Bowling

2011-07-18T02:45:00.001-07:00

Saturday for Dave's birthday, he wanted to take the girls bowling. They actually had a really fun time! After Rylee got the hang of it, she wanted to do everything all by herself and wouldn't even let us come near her. She's getting so big! Makenzie liked pushing the ball down the ramp but could take it for leave it at times. Here are some pictures from the day....

Don't ask Dave who won! It's a little bit of a sore spot for him! But as a plus for me I've never bowled 4 strikes before!

Then my sister asked the girls and I to come and spend the night on Saturday night so we decided Dave could have the house to himself as a birthday treat. We took the girls to the park near her house. Here are some pictures of us around the pond there...

A Shoe Obsession

2011-07-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is going through a phase where she wants to wear everyone else's shoes! She will try on anyone and everyone's shoes! Here are a few cute pictures of her trying on shoes...

Then here's cute picture of Rylee trying on a hat from Ashley Glen. I think she looks super cute in it! I'm going to have to get her to wear more hats!

Then Makenzie then wanted to try some on too...

And one last cute one of Rylee playing one day at my mom's...she has on her dress up shoes and her gloves like a princess. Too bad they are her winter gloves!

Ice Cream

2011-07-12T02:30:00.001-07:00

The other day I decided to give my kids a sweet treat since it is so hot out. I got them each a bowl of Birthday Cake flavored Ice Cream and we headed outside. Both my kids LOVED it! The both had had ice cream at the beach so this wasn't their first ice cream experience but they still like the treat. Here's the pictures....

Then Dave's boss brought Sunflowers from her garden to work and thought our girls might like them so sent them home with him. Here's a picture of them smelling the flowers.

And here's a few of them playing in our pool outside...

2nd half of pictures

2011-07-04T17:43:00.000-07:00

Sorry that "Tomorrow" took a few more days than expected. Here's the rest of the pictures...

The Beach

2011-06-26T17:53:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to Oak Island for our annual trip with my family. The kids had their moments but were overall pretty good (including the car rides!) and everyone had a really great time. It's always fun to have all of our family under one roof! Rylee was a little hesitant of the water but by the end of the week loved it! Makenzie wanted to dive in from the get go! We also rented a bike with a pull along attachment for the girls to ride in. They both seemed to really enjoy that too! My cousin and his wife and their 2 kids also got to come down for the first weekend we were there. Rylee loved playing with Ashley Glen and Barrett! Here are some pictures from the week (I'll probably put these in more than 1 post)

Everyone walking to the beach

Kenzie loving the water

Rylee and her little twin Ashley Glen. When one of them did something the other had to do the same thing!

playing in the sand

Kenzie

Kenzie and Dave

Rylee playing

Kenzie and Mommy

Riding in the bike

Makenzie and Pa playin in the sand

Rylee playing with Ashley Glen

jumping the waves

Hangin with Daddy

she wanted to wear her goggles too

more to come tomorrow....

The Dash

2011-06-09T15:21:00.000-07:00

My and Dave's work offered free tickets to employees and a discounted rate to family members for a game of our local minor league baseball team. Our whole family was up for a night of fun! (Well of course besides Makenzie because it went a ways past her bedtime.) They said they had all you could eat food there, which I guess was true, but all that consisted of was hamburgers and hotdogs, potato salad, slaw and some cookies for dessert. They did however have some of the "typical" baseball food for sale there though. They also had an area set up for the kids with some rides and blow up toys. Rylee rode the carousel but decided to skip the rest of it since she doesn't like to play on them with lots of other kids. We all had a really good time. Rylee loved watching the mascot Bolt, from afar but didn't want anything to do with him if he came anywhere close. She talked about him all night! She also loved watching the games they played in between innings and now wants to know why they don't do that at my softball games! Here are some pictures from the night....

Riding the carousel with Aunt Jessie and Mommy

Every one in their seats!

Her free hat she got!

Then here are a couple random pictures... Last weekend Dave wanted to wash his car and of course Rylee wanted to help. While he would spray it off both girls would sit in their seats and watch and then Rylee would go help (Makenzie sort of too..but she mostly just played).

The Zoo

2011-06-01T16:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the Asheboro Zoo. Last year when we went, Makenzie wasn't big enough to really care about the animals. This year they both loved it! Makenzie was so funny pointing and making noises at all the animals. They seemed to really enjoy it too. Here are a few pictures from the day.

(check out how curly Makenzie's hair got by the end of the day)

Fun at Nana's

2011-05-26T17:31:00.000-07:00

The other day a turtle wandered up to my Mom's house. The girls just thought that was the neatest thing ever! I think this may just be a little preview at how excited they are going to be about our up-coming zoo visit. There are those pictures and a couple more from my mom's house...

Swimming

2011-05-23T02:45:00.000-07:00

Our neighbor, Tracy has a heated swimming pool. This weekend the kids wanted so badly to go swimming so we took them for the first time this year (and the first time since Rylee broke her leg there last year.) I'm happy to report no broken legs this visit! Just lots of smiles and giggles. Makenzie is definately my dare-devil. She was ready to jump right in the water first thing. Rylee had to take a little time to get acquainted with everything first. Here are some pictures and some videos.

Smiles and hugs

2011-05-18T02:40:00.000-07:00

Sometimes my kids play so well together (and sometimes they are like cats and dogs!) The other day they were play so well together and Dave snapped these pictures...

Then here are a couple from my mom's...

The playground

2011-05-15T11:04:00.000-07:00

It's amazing to see how much more independent both my kids are getting at the playground. Rylee brought her baby the other day when we went and named her "Randi" (I'm gonna make it a girlie spelling) and they played all over. Makenzie kinda did her own thing with a little help from momma here and there. They are both growing up so fast!

This last one is taken by Rylee...and I must say she didn't do too bad of a job!

Riding Toys

2011-05-14T11:02:00.000-07:00

I think I'm going to have to give in and get my kids a new riding toy. Over the past week we have been to a couple of houses that have had then and then my neighbor brought over theirs and my kids have loved them! Rylee loves to drive and Makenzie immediately hops on the back! They look so cute. Maybe I can find one at a yard sale so I don't have to spend the money on a new one though. Here are my kids play on the neighbor's Buzz Lightyear toy.

Birthday Parties

2011-05-07T18:44:00.001-07:00

Last weekend was filled with birthday parties. First we went to Graylan's 2nd birthday party. He had an Easter egg hunt, a water table that the girls loved playing at and some new toys to play with. Here are a couple of pictures from there...

Then we went over to Carrington's 5th birthday party where they had a cookout. They had a playhouse for the girls to play with and a barbie car to drive and a couple more toys to play with. Here are a few more pictures....

Rylee also got to hold baby Baine who is about 4 weeks old. She loved it! She petted all over him and loved all over him! Now if she can just convince her Daddy she needs one!

Happy Easter!

2011-05-01T17:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter a week late! Those of you that know me well should know that this really isn't all that out of the ordinary for me but I do apoligize for being so behind on the pictures.

Easter morning we got up and did the Easter bunny first at home with the girls then my whole family went to my parents church for service and back to my parent's house for an Easter egg hunt and Easter lunch. We really had a good time. Here are some of the pictures...

Good morning girls!

the loot!

and Kenzie's

both girls with the rabbit ears

seeing my cousin's girls Reynolds and Chandler at church...as you can see Makenzie wanted nothing to do with it!

Hunting eggs

a little pinch of green in a couple of the eggs..

My mom and grandmother with the girls

My parents and the girls

Dave and I with the girls

Jessie and Daniel

the whole crew

and again

5 Year Anniversary

2011-04-28T18:00:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was my and Dave's 5 year anniversary. My mom and sister watched the girls for us while we had a night away at a bed a breakfast. Each year since getting married we have done a tour and tasting at a winery and decided to do the same again this year. We decided to revisit one of our favorites, Shelton Vineyards, because the restaurant on the property was so good last time we were there. Last time we went was for lunch and this time we thought we would try dinner. I must say it was quite good and quite pricey! Dave and I both said this was the most we have ever spent on a meal on ourselves! Good thing I had won a gift certificate for a free night at a bed and breakfast to make up for it! I must say that it was well worth it though! We definately were in need of a night away. Here are some of the pictures....

At the vineyards

I was quite proud that I was able to use the self timer here...

and here

Our B&B

view from the balcony

the bedroom

the living room

the bathroom

The weather didn't cooperate since we wanted to do the paddleboats and some of the trails around the lake but we still had a great time and would recommend it to anyone!

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-26T17:22:00.000-07:00

This past week we took Rylee to an Easter Egg Hunt at my sister and her husband's church. (It was right at Makenzie's bedtime or else we would have taken her too!) Rylee gets a little overwhelmed with a lot of other kids around but she did manage to find a few eggs with a little help! Here are a few pictures from the night...

The girls have been practicing hiding eggs around the house. Rylee loves it! Here she is and then just a couple cute pictures of Makenzie...

Then a cute one of how I found Rylee the other day. She called me in the room to show me what she was doing and I thought it was awfully cute! She takes her babies everywhere! They were all taking a nap together.

So big!

2011-04-21T19:12:00.000-07:00

My girls read a book that talks about how big you are and then the kids raise their arms into the air. My kids both have thought that it was super cute to do that. I always tickle them when they do it, so they both will do it over and over. Here are some of the pictures...

Then a few of my girls in the pre-Easter dresses (yes I know I'm a week behind...and I plan on making up on lost time)

--just as a side note--Makenzie is now just as much a blankie girl as Rylee and will drag her blankies around the house the same way as Rylee. Here's Makenzie with her blankies...

These pictures are mostly of Rylee with our neighbor across the street. She loves it when they are out (Joel who is I think 5 and his older brother Drew who I think is 9). I think that one day she may have a little crush on Joel. For now she is too shy to even hardly talk to him. As soon as she goes outside she becomes like a fly glued to her mommy's leg. The other day though, Rylee and Joel played follow the leader on their bikes. Here they are...

And here's just a couple cute pictures of the girls. Rylee wants to be a good big sister and help Makenzie walk down our hill in the back yard but Makenzie wants to be little miss independent and do it herself.

This past week

2011-04-12T18:27:00.000-07:00

This past week the weather got to be pretty warm. We were able to play outside several days. Here are a few pictures from the week...

hanging out at my mom's

Rylee at my mom's

Sally was riding in the Cozy Coope and Mary was in the wagon...it was cute

Rylee pushing her babies

Makenzie loves these little windmill things

Rylee had to bring her babies to the back yard too...they seem to go everywhere with us these days...

The girls

and again

Makenzie watching the neighbor's dogs

Makenzie got up from her nap before Rylee the other day so these are from her playing that day

playing with some letters

she loves to sit in chairs...and will climb in them all by herself!

in the cat bed

and again

The Playground

2011-04-04T18:12:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went out to eat with my family for Uncle Daniel's birthday. I had our camera but forgot to take a single picture. Rylee begged to go to the playground afterwards though. I remembered it then! Here are some pictures from us playing. The girls had so much fun!

Tents

2011-04-03T17:04:00.000-07:00

This past week when it was cold and rainy and we couldn't get outside Rylee wanted to make a tent. We've done it in the past but not since Makenzie has been able to play in it too. This time not only did we make a tent from a blanket but we got out the tent she got one year for her birthday too. It has a fun tube that you can climb through too. She girls had alot of fun playing with both of them! Here are a few pictures...

Portrait Innovations

2011-03-30T17:47:00.000-07:00

I took the girls to get their pictures made the other day. I must tell you that I am a huge fan of Portrait Innovations! They can get my girls to smile like no other! I can hardly ever get good smiles out of Makenzie or have to work really hard to get them on camera and they act like it is no big deal. The pictures really turned out great. Here are a few of them...

Roasting Hot Dogs in the Fire Pit

2011-03-29T15:31:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago was the perfect weekend to cook out in our firepit. Dave was dying to use it and I thought Rylee might like cooking hot dogs on the fire. My dad came over to cook the hot dogs with us. While Dave got the fire going, the girls and I got to play outside for a little while. Both girls really love playing outside. The flowers are really starting to get really pretty too which made for some really pretty pictures! Here are the pictures from both!

Beautiful Weather

2011-03-23T17:06:00.000-07:00

We have been having some beautiful weather and my girls love that they are getting to play outside more. Rylee is really getting good at riding her bike and Makenzie LOVES playing in the playhouse I got last year. Here are some pictures from the other day.

This is Makenzie's microphone...she carries this around "singing" into it for forever! (Sarah this is the one you guys gave us forever ago!)

Playing in Rylee's room

Rylee being cute

Makenzie and the house

and again

and again

Rylee loving the sandbox

Makenzie decided to join her

my little cuties

such sweet girls!

Grandma and Grandpa

2011-03-22T18:43:00.001-07:00

Dave's parent's, Randy and Kelly got to come in for a visit for the kids birthdays. My kids loved seeing Grandma and Grandpa! Plus they really spoiled them with lots of awesome birthday presents, good candies and treats and lots of fun times. Here are some pictures from the visit.

(this is the new vanity Grandma bought the girls at a consignment sale)

(doing hair--which Rylee did ALOT of)

(I think we still have a little work to do on the ball playing skills...)

Come back soon Grandma and Grandpa! We miss you already!

Way behind

2011-03-21T17:17:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to post pictures from Makenzie's birthday party too and just haven't gotten around to it. Something about having 2 kids and working full time just takes up so much time these days! Here are some pictures though!

The cake

The food

The birthday "throne"

Some of the folks that helped us celebrate

Mom and the birthday girl

Looking out the door

hanging with Pa

She LOVED her cake!

again

check out that smile!

The family

opening presents

I think this was Makenzie's favorite present because she pretty much spent the rest of the party in it!

Her cool glasses

hanging with Uncle Daniel

Then Rylee getting a turn with the cozy coope!

Thanks to everyone for helping make the birthday parties such a fun time and a success!

Bikes and Cozy Coopes

2011-03-13T17:29:00.000-07:00

My girls really love riding on their toys. Even today despite being sick half the night and most of the day, the only thing that they wanted to do was to play outside. Here are a few pictures of them playing and a couple of videos. Rylee has finally figured out how to peddle on her big girl bike so that is a couple of the videos and the other is of her pushing Kenzie. She loved doing it this afternoon!

Rylee filling up the cozy coope with gas

Then 2 bonus pictures of my girls and their blankies...they both love them!

Please excuse my hair...it was a rough night last night...

Happy Birthday Rylee

2011-03-09T17:12:00.000-08:00

This weekend was kinda a whirlwind with both girl's birthdays so close together. I'm a little out of order but I'm going to post the pictures of Rylee's party first since it's the majority of the pictures that we took of her on her actual birthday. That way she can have a dedicated post like Makenzie.

Her party was great. This year we decided to stick with the idea of just immediate family and a few of her friends. We ended up with 5 kids plus my 2 there. They all had a really great time and got along really great. Here are the kids that came...

First Rylee the birthday girl

our neighbor Karley, who is about 6 weeks older than Rylee

her brother Nate who turned 2 in December

Bryton who will be 2 in May

Tyler, my roommate from college Sarah's little boy, who turned 2 in January

and Graylan who will be 2 in April

I decided to be a little crafty and got the kids flower pots for them to decorate so that they could have something to remember from the party. Everyone had fun decorating!

Then we opened presents...Rylee got a little help from a few friends.

Then finally we ate dirt cake! I wanted to be a little different since we had just had regular cake at Makenzie's party so we did dirt cake.

Happy Birthday Makenzie

2011-03-03T12:25:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it has been a whole year since Makenzie Grace joined our family. She is such a sweet girl and has added to our family in ways I couldn't even imagine a year ago. She is such a sweet sister to Rylee and loves to give her hugs and kisses and is branching out and maybe becoming a little bit of a Daddy's girl now. She has the best smile and loves to flash it all times of the day. She does have her Daddy's temper and is quick to show it when her sister takes a toy she wants. We are working on that though! She loves to walk around the house holding hands with Mom or Dad and follows sister to do anything she's doing. We can't wait to spend many more years to come loving on her! We love you Makenzie Grace Bennett!
Here are some pictures from our day today...

Giving Mary a kiss

She did this all by herself...feeding Mary

with Nana

giving Elmo a hug

And we can't leave out sister...so here are a few of her too

The playground

2011-02-21T17:15:00.000-08:00

We have had some really nice weather here the past couple of days. My mom got to take the girls to the play ground last week before we all started getting sick. They loved it! Here are some pictures.

And a few from just playing...

Pretty Day

2011-02-13T18:32:00.001-08:00

Today was a pretty day and we were able to go outside and play for a few minutes. Both kids really loved it! Here are a few pictures from it.

Then tonight we went ahead and gave the girls their Valentines day gifts (or as Rylee told her Dad, their dinosaur gifts) since we won't have much time in the morning. Here they are opening their cards and gifts.

Best Friends

2011-01-27T10:49:00.001-08:00

My girls are really starting to play together alot more. Makenzie loves to do everything that Rylee is doing. And Rylee, of course, wants to play with everything Makenzie is playing with. They really are cute. Here are a few pictures of them playing together recently.

Trying to get a picture of just the 2 of them didn't work out so I tried to hold them...which wasn't much better...

Rylee has started dressing herself now. She moves the stool in her room that was by her bed to in front on her dresser so that she was reach all her clothes. It's great that she wants to dress herself. She even will change her outfit numerous times a day...just because she got a little water on it!
Here's the outfit she chose the other day

Here is Makenzie's favorite toy at my mom's. She especially loves to carry it around with her.

And here Rylee decided to load ALL her babies up in the stroller for a ride.

Videos

2011-01-11T03:08:00.001-08:00

Here are a few videos of things going on in our lives. Since it's been so cold, we've been mostly inside. Makenzie is coming right along with learning how to walk though. She will stand right up, somtimes in the middle of no where and take as many as 10-12 steps before falling. Here's a little video with about 8 steps.

Then one day when I went to take Rylee to the potty I came back and couldn't find Makenzie. When I did, I had to get on video where I found her since she obviously is going to be my little monkey.

Last night my mom sent home an Elmo doll that Rylee loves to play with at her house. Dave and Rylee got some good exercise with it. Here they are dancing....

New outfits and Nana's

2011-01-04T16:17:00.000-08:00

This week my mom has been trying help me take some pictures of my girls in their new outfits they got for Christmas and a few of them just playing around the house. Here are the pictures...

Snow!

2011-01-02T18:53:00.000-08:00

Please forgive me as I still can't seem to catch up! Last weekend we had about 5 inches of snow. Last year Rylee liked the snow when it was falling but really didn't want anything to do with it after that point. She really got into it this year though! Here are a few pictures from some time spent out in the snow.

Totally Rylee's idea to mow by the way...

and this is where Makenzie got to hang out while Rylee played outside....

she LOVED watching out the window!

Then Mommy thought it would be fun to let Makenzie feed herself a chocolate muffin....

and Rylee while not quite as much a mess herself....had donuts with cinnamon and sugar that got all over the table...

Needless to say...there was a bath right after breakfast this day!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-27T16:20:00.000-08:00

We had a very fun Christmas this year! I must say that all Rylee really got into it and made up for Makenzie not caring much at all! We really had a great time with my family and with Dave's family! Here are some pictures from the holidays.

Visiting Sarah and Stacy

2010-12-12T18:26:00.000-08:00

On Saturday we made a trip down to Charlotte to visit with Sarah, Stacy and Tyler. Everyone had a great time and we even did a little craft! Here are a few pictures...

This is on the way down...Kenzie was fussing and her sister decided to share her Blankie

Then here are a few random things....

This is how I found Makenzie dressed this morning when I got her out of bed. I had been at a Christmas party so Dave got her ready for bed and claimed he didn't know these weren't hers

Kenz in her Santa bib

my girls playing

Then we went to see Santa the other day...needless to say neither child was all that impressed by him. Rylee did finally tell him what she wanted for Christmas- a baby doll and a game.

Far Behind

2010-12-12T18:16:00.000-08:00

I am so far behind in blogging. I'm going to attempt to catch up a bit but I'll probably do a couple posts just so you don't get overwhelmed with pictures!

We had about an inch or so of snow a couple weeks ago and the girls enjoyed being out when it was falling. We didn't realize it was supposed to snow so early in the day and decided to start raking and ended up finishing in the snow! Here are a few pictures...

Rylee actually took this picture!

Rylee decided she needed to help her daddy mow up the leaves

Then a little hot chocolate after we came back in

And if you look closely you can see Makenzie's black eye that she gave herself

A little Christmas gift for all!

2010-12-04T12:30:00.000-08:00

Shutterfly is offering an awesome promotion for us bloggers. They are offering 50 free cards if you blog about which Christmas card is your favorite! We've used them in the past for printing pictures and they are always great quality! Plus I make a photo book each year that is lots of fun to put together using them. You just pick out the pictures that you want to use and you can arrange them in the book or there is also an option for them to arrange them for you. It's a great way to have your favorite pictures all in one place and you get 20 pages for a great price.

I've still been using traditional cards in the past but I am really excited this year that I get to have our picture on the card! I think this will have to be the way to go from now on. This one is my favorite! Can you just see our little smiling faces in this card??

I love that you can use 1 picture or lots. They have lots of designs to choose from too. I can't wait to get my pictures in there and be able to send them out!

I love the traditional colors and the more modern looks that they have to choose from.

They also have lots of other products that can make great gifts for this year if you still are in need!
Here's a link for their calenders... http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars

And if you have that favorite picture that you are just waiting to hang on your wall... http://www.shutterfly.com/home-decor/canvas-wall-art

Or the next time that you need birthday invitations... http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/birthday-cards-stationery

I must say that I am very excited about this promotion and really glad that Shutterfly chose to do this this year!

If you are a blogger and want to participate here's the website for more info!
http://blog.shutterfly.com/5358/holiday2010-blog-submission-form/

Thanksgiving

2010-12-02T15:30:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving this year. Sorry I'm a little late in posting but it is almost impossible to find time with Dave going to bed so early since he has to be at work at 4 am. (On a side note he got a new job today!!! And gets to go back to regular hours!!) We had Thanksgiving Day at my mom's house and then a late Thanksgiving on Saturday with my mom's side of the family. Here are a few pictures from that.

This is Ashley Glen, my cousin's little girl who is 4

Jessie's birthday and some push toys

2010-11-25T17:47:00.000-08:00

Last week we got together for my sister's birthday. Here are some pictures from our dinner...

Then Makenzie has started pushing her push toys around the house. And she wants to do it all the time! Here's a couple videos.

Playing

2010-11-16T15:34:00.000-08:00

The girls are getting to where they will play together more now. They are super cute too! Here are some pictures...

This is how I found Makenzie the other day...

Do they look alike?

2010-11-02T02:30:00.000-07:00

Here is Rylee and Makenzie both in the cow Halloween costume. While sometimes I do think they look alike, I think these pictures prove they really don't!

Makenzie

Rylee

Makenzie

Rylee

Halloween pajamas

2010-10-30T17:28:00.000-07:00

Just a note to say that I'm far behind on posts (it's hard to do everything! Especially since I worked 96 hours in the last 2 weeks!) so tonight you get a 3 for 1 deal!

Tonight the girls went to bed in their Halloween pajamas. I thought they were just adorable!

Trunk or Treat

2010-10-30T17:16:00.000-07:00

Tonight was a Trunk or Treat at a local church. We took the girls to it for a little pre-Halloween fun.

Fishing for candy

with a miniature horse someone had there

with our friends and neighbors Karley and Nate

and again since I couldn't decide which was better

with a race car

she was soo cute saying trick or treat

my friends little boy Hudson who is about 2 weeks younger than Makenzie

and with our friend's little boy Coen

Party

2010-10-30T16:51:00.000-07:00

Rylee went to my mom's neighbor Bethany's little girl Haven's 2nd birthday party last weekend. She took a while to warm up for everything but she ended up really having a great time! It was at a local place called Cheer Mania and it had a foam pit, inflatables and lots of balls with room to run! It was also a costume party so Rylee is in her "hat" costume as she refers to it. For some reason all she can remember is the hat. Here are some pictures...

Then I decided to cut a few of Makenzie's long pieces of hair. Here is proof why Mommy is a nurse and not a hair dresser. At least it isn't too bad and will grow back soon.

Lastly, now that Makenzie is mobile she pulls up on everything. Things that can hold her weight...and things that can't. Here are a few cute ones I got of her and her sister.

Carving our Pumpkin

2010-10-24T14:42:00.000-07:00

We carved our pumpkin today! Neither one of the girls wanted too much to do with the actual carving (Rylee refused to touch any of the goop) so here they are with the finished product....

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

We made our annual trip to our local pumpkin patch today. It was a little more difficult getting 2 children to smile for the camera and making sure that Makenzie didn't do a face dive into the ground like Rylee did a few years ago but I think we got some good pictures. Here they are....

The Zoo

2010-10-22T12:10:00.000-07:00

The other day we took the girls to the Zoo for the first time. Both girls were really good and had a really great time! Makenzie was extremely well considering we were there for about 5 hours and she skipped her nap! Here are some pictures....

Horse back Riding

2010-10-20T16:08:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my mom and I took Rylee to my friend Julie's barn to play with her horses. The intent was to let Rylee ride on one too but the best we could get was to let her sit on one. She wasn't too sure about them at first, but warmed up to them....just not enough to ride them yet. Maybe next time though. Here are some pictures.

The Fair

2010-10-08T02:43:00.000-07:00

The Dixie Classic Fair is in town here and it's one of my favorite times of the year! We took the girls last weekend. Everyone had a great time! Rylee really loved the slide this year, but wasn't too fond of the ride where she had to do it by herself. She started screaming and they actually stopped the ride so she could get off! We also played a few games and won a fish, which Rylee named Fishy. Here are some pictures...

Nana's

2010-10-04T08:05:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while I'll get my mom's camera and find out what the girls have been up to at her house. Here is the latest...

Then these are from this weekend. Rylee and mom my went up to my aunt's house to visit our cousins. These are Rylee with Ashley Glenn, Barrett, my grandmother and my aunt Karasann.

And Mom was able to get a good picture of Makenzie's teeth...it's terrible of her...but you can see her teeth!

Exercising

2010-09-27T18:03:00.000-07:00

Tonight I was doing a little exercising at home and Rylee wanted to join in. She even went and got some weights I have from the closet. Here is her form of exercising...

Out takes

2010-09-26T17:31:00.001-07:00

I just wanted a good picture of both girls today. Was that too hard to ask? Apparently for a 2 1/2 yr old and a 6 month old it is. Here are the out takes...

Then finally a pretty good one..

And does this look familiar? Rylee wore it 2 years ago tomorrow for Jessie and Daniel's wedding! Happy Anniversary guys!

She has 2 teeth too on the bottom...I've tried to get a good picture and just can't. You can sorta tell here though.

And here is proof that we are gonna have our hands really full soon...

And a video to show how she gets around. She mostly does this but will actually get up on her hands and knees and crawl a bit too.

And cuz I took one of Kenz by herself...here is one of Rylee too

Fall Festival

2010-09-25T17:17:00.000-07:00

Today our work was sponsoring a Fall Festival. The weather has not at all cooperated with the fall feeling but we decided to venture out in the 90+ weather anyways. It wasn't exactly what we thought it would be...but I think Rylee had fun anyways. They had a bunch of animals to pet and see and then some games and activities. Here are the pictures....

Feeding the goats

watching the camel

The baby tiger that they wouldn't let get close to anyone

the baby kangaroo

riding Lightning the pony

Makenzie just got to hang out in her stroller the whole time since she's not really big enough to do any of this...

But she is big enough to ride Rylee's bike! Here are a few pictures of her doing that

Trip to Michigan

2010-09-19T12:47:00.000-07:00

This past week we went to Michigan to visit Dave's parents. It was definately difficult trying to fly with 2 children (hence why I have no plane or airport pictures) but we had a lot of fun when we got there! Here are some of the pictures from the week...

Tired Makenzie after the plane rides

Rylee and her cousin Evan

looking for squirrels

Makenzie wasn't sure about Evan

my girls

With their grandma

Cool camera trick

out to dinner at Boat Works

and again

Rylee and her daddy

The Bennetts

playing by the water

out shopping

in the car on the way back to the airport

Thanks for a great visit Grandma and Grandpa!

Bath time

2010-09-09T09:01:00.000-07:00

Bath time is getting a lot easier now that Makenzie can sit up. And Rylee still loves her sister so much! She is so funny with her too. Yesterday my mom said she was talking to Makenzie and she said "Sorry Kenz. I had to check on the laundry." I swear she is 2 going on 12! Here are a few bath time pictures

Makenzie

2010-09-02T17:35:00.000-07:00

Makenzie is getting so big so fast! She is finally starting to sit up...and starting to try to crawl all at once! She will army crawl pretty much anywhere she wants to go and will get up on her knees every once in a while! Here are a few pictures and a couple videos. I'll have to try to get some more videos of her crawling soon. In the last videos she is laughing at our cats and I just thought it was funny.

Sunday Funday!

2010-08-22T18:38:00.000-07:00

Today we had a really fun day. I must admit how much I love that Rylee really loves her sister right now. Every time Makenzie wakes up Rylee is the first to run in there and climb in her crib and hold her. Plus she wants to hold and feed her all the time too! They are just too cute! Plus it probably makes it even better that Makenzie can't get enough of her big sister! Here they are after church today.

This crazy program turned my picture sideways again...

Then I bought some cookies and some icing a few days ago and wanted to let Rylee decorate them. She loved it! And did a pretty good job I must admit.

Then I gave Rylee an empty diaper box to play with. She and Dave had quite a bit of fun with it today. They made it her "car" and her raced her around the house in it. They even put on her driving coat, gloves, hat and glasses.

Ears Pierced!

2010-08-21T17:51:00.000-07:00

So I've been thinking for a while about how I wanted to get my girls ear's pierced. I wish I would have done Rylee's when she was a baby and wanted to do Makenzie's while she wouldn't mess with them. Tonight while we were at the mall....we did it! Both girls did great! Rylee cried a little more than Makenzie but neither did for very long. It's going to be interesting getting Rylee to let me clean them and turn them though since she thinks it will hurt. We'll see. Makenzie doesn't even know they are there though! Rylee got little daisies with diamonds and Makenzie's are just plain diamonds. Here are a few pictures of my cuties with earrings.

My girls

2010-08-15T06:19:00.000-07:00

I just love seeing my girls together! They both just love each other to death right now. Every time Rylee comes anywhere near Makenzie, Makenzie just lights up! And Rylee is the first to run and get something for Makenzie or to try to comfort her if she is crying. She sings frer a joc a to her all the time! Here are a few pictures of them together....

Then we had our friends Zack and Jennifer over last night for dinner. Their little boy Graylan is 15 months and it was neat to see him and Rylee interact.

Our pool!

2010-08-10T17:40:00.001-07:00

This weekend we got both girls out in the pool! This pool is awesome and we set up out tent over it to block the sun which made it even better! They both had a great time. Then we got together with my cousin and his wife and kiddos to play. They all had a great time!

Ethan...my cousin's 1 year old

Rylee with JP and Allie...ages 2 and 3

Plus Rylee got a new play toy for the yard...and the best part is that I found the new play house at a yard sale for only $10!! Here's our new and improved yard!

Weekend at the Lake

2010-08-03T16:52:00.000-07:00

My sister's in laws have a place at Badin Lake and they invited us to spend the weekend with them there. We had a great time despite both kids having colds! Rylee even wanted to get in the water this time around! Here are a few pictures...

Rylee reading

2010-07-29T17:11:00.000-07:00

Rylee has really started loving to read books. That is one aspect of her cast that we can actually be thankful for....before then she wouldn't sit down long enough to read them. This is her favorite book that she has most of memorized. Sorry my camera wasn't working well so it's split into a couple segments...

Prayers

2010-07-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Rylee has learned a new prayer to say before bedtime. She is a really smart cookie too since she has learned this in only about a week or 2 and with just practicing saying it at bedtime.

Then some pictures from the week

Makenzie in her jumper

and again

Rylee and Makenzie

Rylee wanted Makenzie to hold her baby...and Makenzie actually loved holding it

A picture taken by Rylee

New pool

2010-07-18T17:34:00.000-07:00

Since we went to a birthday party a few weeks ago...we have been trying to find a pool like the one that Rylee played in that night. Finally, my mother in law Kelly found one in Michigan and shipped it to us. Here are the pictures...

Then here are some pictures and a video of Makenzie in her exersaucer from tonight. She loved it and laughed at herself in the mirror over and over!

I can't get this last photo to rotate...

4 month appointment

2010-07-12T17:40:00.000-07:00

Today we went for Makenzie's 4 month appointment. I can't believe that she is already 4 months old! She now weighs 15 pounds and 11 oz and is 24 1/2 in. long. For comparison, Rylee was 15 pounds even and 25 5/8 in. when she was 4 months old. We got the go ahead to start with solid foods with Makenzie, so she got her first taste of rice cereal. She actually did really well with it. Big sister Rylee wanted to try it too...needless to say her reaction wasn't quite as well (she gagged on it!).

All finished!

Rylee has been being a super big sister and this morning wanted to hold and feed her sister so here are a few pictures of that too.

in their Sunday dresses

Then just a few random pictures

This is how many blankets Rylee thought she needed this morning

This is a video of Makenzie's first bites of rice cereal. Sorry, I don't know how to turn it around.

Playing inside

2010-07-10T05:51:00.000-07:00

Since it has been so hot recently, we've been stuck mostly playing inside these days. Makenzie is getting big enough and able to hold her head up enough to start sitting in her highchair and exersaucer to play. Here are a few pictures from the week.

This is probably the 1 time we really got to go outside. Rylee got a kit to make chalk for her birthday and we just hadn't tried it yet. It was really fun and make some cool chalk.

Then Rylee has started going through my mom's pajama drawer when mom is in the shower. Here is how she found her the other day when she got out...

Happy 4th from the Bennetts

2010-07-04T16:51:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th of July from the Bennetts. Both of my girls are dressed in their 4th gear today! Here's Rylee's picture and Makenzie's. I took them both to Target tonight and am so sorry I didn't have my camera. Makenzie rode in Rylee's lap and Rylee loved it! She petted her and talked to her the whole time. It was so cute! I'll take pictures next time!

She let me french braid her hair again today too!

Please excuse her hair and red marks. She had just woken up and was sleeping with her hand beside her face when I woke her.

First bath together and baking cookies

2010-06-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

Rylee and Makenzie got their first bath together the other night. Makenzie isn't sitting up yet so I just put her bath tub in there with Rylee. Rylee loved it. Not sure how Makenzie felt about being squirted during her bath but she didn't cry. Here's the pics

Then today we went down to my neighbor's to bake some cookies with her 2 kids and another little girl. Rylee loved decorating her cookie. Here are the pictures...

Rylee's cookie