16 months

The last month has been so sweet for my Sugar Blythe. In just the last week, she has started walking about 90% of the time. She has suddenly reached that stage where she is mimicking words and sounds and has several down pat. Her new words this month are imperfect, but understandable: thank you, bye bye, Abba (Abby), ball, baba (puppy), and animal sounds for cow, dog, lion, bird, monkey, chicken, and cat. She has words for lots of things- it's just wonderful to hear her speaking- but those her only accurate ones. She also is now pointing out body parts and at pictures in books when asked to identify objects- yea! She also love kicking and throwing balls. We just love this picture because you can see how she just works those eyes and eyebrows. It is precious.

Walking girl!Joy continues to just be an absolute mess. The girl is everywhere- her walk/run/amble is so fast and so fearless. She has already started this season's continually scraped knee now that it's too warm for pants and her speed often dictates face-plants. She likes everything (except animals up close) and reaches for strangers to hold her. Which is funny because she once cried when my big brother just said hi to her. She is loud, energetic, passionate, and wears her heart on her sleeve. That is usually priceless, and sometimes really noisy.

This video warms my heart to no end, and I caught Joy's big laugh on the tail end of it, if you can make it out over Blythe's toy. This was before Blythe was predominantly walking.

Joy loves keeping up with her big sis. Her proportions and hair at this age is identical to Abby Jane, and I frequently get flashbacks when I see Joy from the back, especially if she's in Abby Jane's old clothes.

SUCH a ham.
Jake said I should post this next video of the girls playing with an outgoing diaper box just because it's a good slice of life. It's not particularly profound, but just an after gymnastics, after Costco, after lunch playtime!

It dawned on me the other day that this 16 months stage is the age in which most people start talking about having another baby. Those people probably don't have twins and a three year old, but nevertheless, this is that age that is just SWEET and FUN and gets easier daily as they're getting more independent. You just plain want to eat them up.

The cards that keep on giving...

Every morning, we choose two Christmas cards and pray for those friends or family that day. I don't think Abby Jane will really like when we run out of Christmas cards- getting to pick out new cards each morning is extremely vital to the beginning of her day.

Thanks to all you sweet people, I think we may be into April before that happens. In the meantime, know that if we received a card from you, you have been or will be prayed for by the Gross family!

Granny

Jake's Granny went to be with the Lord last night. I could not attempt to adequately describe such an amazing woman in a single blog entry. Simply put, however, she was the most beautiful, elegant and loving of ladies who made everyone around her feel particularly special and loved. She was an amazing athlete her entire life, and she cut a mean rug at our wedding. The best dancer there by far.

Here she is as a deb at the Piedmont Driving Club in 1944...

She's on the far right by Sandy at our wedding...

Employing her magic touch on Abby Jane. A stroke several years ago robbed us all of her words, but she could still communicate delight and love for us all. Abby Jane never sat still for anyone at this age, but she was content right there with Granny for quite a while.
Meeting Blythe and Joy...

She was game for holding two wiggly babies at the end of their 1st bday party...

This was just a few weeks ago at a baby shower for Jake's cousin Emily.

Granny was an immense blessing to our family and has left a beautiful legacy. She raised four children, including my wonderful, godly mother-in-law, who in turn raised my amazing husband... I am so grateful to that precious woman, and as Jake put it, we know she's doing the foxtrot in heaven! What a celebration it is when a believer goes to be with the Lord.

A long overdue visit...

My big brother and his family live in Greenville, and though we see them on a pretty regular basis here in Atlanta, we have not actually been UP to visit them since Ryan was born at 33 weeks and was in the NICU. Ryan's five now, so shame on us for taking so long to come back.

When we arrived, Ashley and Abby Jane got right to work in the kitchen.

They weren't the only ones working in kitchens. New granite countertops were just being finished that afternoon, and Joy was fascinated.

We got to celebrate turning three one more time!

My brother's a great dad.

Saturday was a gorgeous, perfect day, and we went to the zoo in the morning. This was Blythey's moment. She was bubbling over with excitement the whole time. Before this visit, her only animal sound was the elephant. While we were there, she did elephant, monkey, alligator, lion, and chicken. So all she needed was motivation, apparently!

"Mom, did you see that?"

Joy's reaction was to be content until an animal moved.

Then, at every exhibit, as soon as an animal moved, she would say, "All done! Bye bye!" repeatedly, rounding it out with hand signals.

While Blythe just waved and giggled away.

Two sets of big girl pigtails on Abby Jane and Ashley...

How cute are the orangoutangs kissing? The baby's name is Bob.

All six kids...

Then we went to the Greenville Riverplace, which I was officially obsessed with. If we lived in Greenville, this would be where I would hang a LOT. There was so, so much to do, and all of it OUTSIDE!

Joy refused to be contained in the stroller or anyone's arms and preferred to do her current walk/amble/perpetual forward fall the whole way.

After naps in the afternoon, we hit the neighborhood park, and the twins loved the slides!

Joy's hair is hilarious on end.

During naps and after the kids went to bed, the adults played Wii- it's humbling when you don't play games like that often- but pretty hilarious, too.

We left after church on Sunday. Thank you, Elliott fam, for a perfect getaway and refreshing, fabulous family time! We surely love y'all!!

The partying continued...

On the way home from Greenville, we stopped at the Gillies' home to celebrate Luke's 2nd bday! Here is the big birthday boy giving Janie a ride.

Check Joy's flying hair.

Betsy had a brilliant plan to let the kids let a huge bunch of balloons go for entertainment.

All the kids loved it.

So did the grown-ups. (Sorry for the nostril shot, babe.)

They called me out of the house to see how Blythe was loving driving Abby Jane. That is, until she saw mama, then it was a different story...

Happy big brother of the birthday boy.

Precious family.

And Paul outdid himself with the golf course cupcakes. It was awesome- uneven fairway, green, and even... wait for it... a bunker (with grated cookies and cream chocolate on top!) Well, well done, Paul!

Happy birthday to our precious Luke!

The weather...

We've been under it. Here's Day 1... and yes, that's me curled up sick next to my pale sweet girl- both losing cookies on a regular basis. And let me say that once, she looked up from an episode and told me, "I'm praying for you, Mama."

Morning of Day 2- I'm better, she's a little improved, but still listless. Feels up to Memory, but with emergency bowl on the side.

While the Cat rested, the Mice played... with her leggings.

Afternoon of Day 2- she woke up from her afternoon nap with color, and we fled to the beauty of outside!

All was right. And yes, she's in the front yard in her PJ's.

Then Daddy came home and we had Valentine's one day late.

After the girls went to bed, we had a fabulous dinner followed by these Mocha Java Cakes, made a little ghetto by using creme brulee dishes instead of the larger souffle dishes it called for. But still delish delish delish. Well worth kicking the stomach bug for!

V-Day Shindig

Abby Jane, Blythe, and Joy hostessed a Valentine's open house for their friends on Saturday to let mamas in our small group come make a homemade Valentine and give daddies some morning time off.

Of course where there are ladies and it is Valentines, there will be sweets...

These lemon butter cookies were my personal obsession. I LOVE sweet and tart. I stole the recipe from Katie Kelley's 1st bday, and I could have inhaled unhealthy quantities as I made them.

Abby Jane hardly left her seat here the whole time- she was a BIG fan of free reign of glitter, paint, glue, stickers, crayons, the works.

The party was a total success. By that I mean, it went exactly how I thought it might. Total chaos- but the kind that's normal when there is more than one child around. A few near disasters, basically a craft explosion, some child or another (of the 10 or so) crying at some point off and on most of the time- people came, did their craft, had some treats, and felt freedom to go when their child was on the verge of a meltdown or too close to lunch/naps... because that is the beauty of an open house- no pressure. It was perfect.

Reagan re-fueling mid-valentine...

Alaina is sitting on her mama's other little valentine- expected in the next few weeks!

I corralled the twins into their re-located high chairs to get their hands on some hearts...

Blythe was much more patient with painted hands than Joy. Shocker.
Holly was kind enough to personalize some valentine butterflies for me to hand out...
and let me borrow the idea for making these heart-shaped crayons!
Blythe and Joy monitoring the clean-up process while alternately eating/drawing with crayons...
A few masterpieces drying...
One of the hostesses double tasking with a left-over tootsie roll pop...

The perfect end to a great day was having Mark and Lindsey over to play games and make a dent in leftover party treats!