The Mitchell Sisters

Rolling through the year...

So January is almost behind us. The girls have been quite busy the past few weeks.  Abby continues her weekly "vallet" class (she calls it vallet not ballet). This past week the story was Aladdin, and they all dressed in Jasmine princes costumes, with their only little Apu (the monkey).  It was painfully cute to watch.  We have also just registered her to start a 3 day pre-school program in September.  So hard to believe the she will be starting "school".

On the liver front, Abby's last labs were stable, but they want to get an MRI of her liver and abdomen to monitor blood flow and look for any possible signs of cancer.  This is just precautionary, so we are expecting (and hoping) things will be fine. She is scheduled for Feb 3, 2010, so please keep her in your thoughts.

Natalie is very close to surpassing her big sister in clothes size.  All she needs is a bit more height. She is really starting to talk more and put words together.  I have a feeling that once she "really" learns to talk, we will all be in trouble. She is really getting into puzzles and LOVES to dance.  She also continues to be our little climber.  She is now able to climb out of her crib.  YIKES. Looks like it is time for a toddler bed.

Here are some of the more recent pics of the little ladies.

 




 

Memory lane is an amazingly strange place... (yes this is a true story)

Over the past few weeks Mark and I had been talking about signing Abby up for some kind of class. As a little girl I took ballet.  While reminiscing about my own childhood, I remembered this little dance bag that I had, called a "ballet box". During my stroll on memory lane, I decided to search for a ballet box on e-bay.  After 45 minutes of searching (I know, great use of time) I came across 2 used ballet boxes for sale.  One was blue and one was pink.  My old box was pink, so naturally this is the one I choose.  About four days later my package arrived.  I literally felt like a little girl again, ripping open my package.  As I ooohhhhed and ahhhhhhed over my prize, I noticed that there were some stickers on the back of the box.  It was at that time that I realized that I was holding MY BALLET BOX. My brother had stuck NFL mascot stickers on the back of my box (these were the same stickers that I was staring at now).  About 25 years ago, this exact box and I had parted ways via a garage sale only to be reunited by Ebay many moons later.  I cannot even calculate the odds of this happening, but I am fairly certain that I have blown all chances of winning the lottery.  It is so bizarre how the universe works.  I suppose the box was "meant" to be mine.

 So Abigail started ballet class last Tuesday.  It is a program for 3 and 4 year-olds called Tiny Dancers. They focus on a story or fairy tale each week and dress up in little costumes and dance around.  This week it was "The Little Engine That Could", and they dressed in little smocks and conductor hats.  It is pretty darn cute.  As Abby has had no structured play or classes before I was a little worried about how she would fare.  To my delight (and relief) she had a blast!  The first thing she did was run up and give Ms. Teresa (her dance teacher) a hug.  I was expecting tears when I left the room, but she settled in quite nicely with the four other little ballerinas in her class. I have posted some pictures of "the ballet box" and of Abby in her class.

 

Happy 2010!!!

Wow.  A new year, a new decade.  The promise and hope of a new year is awesome. I cannot wait to see what experiences and memories my two amazing and beautiful daughters will bring to our little family in 2010.  Here are some cute photos from the first day of the new year.  (They are modeling some of their super cute Christmas wear from Uncle Chris)!! And a photo of Natalie wearing Aunt Kitty's glasses. (She looks so smart!)

Wishing all who read this blog a very happy, healthy, and prosperous 2010!