Ella and Zoë

Tuesday, September 6, 2016

A California Winery

A California Winery that was a castle

and had a Harry Potter feel to it --

Perfect for the adults AND for the kids!!

And a perfect way to spend a perfect day in California :)

Monday, September 5, 2016

A California Wedding ~

This is how we started our summer --

a family wedding in Napa and a family trip to San Fransisco!!

Being silly in the taxi, lots of Baby Veronica time, lots of

Grama Dianne time, lots of Rupprecht family time,

seeing places the girls have read about, 90 degree weather,

swimming and hot-tubbing it, an absolutely beautiful wedding

at a gorgeous vineyard, delicious food and even dancing

with new friends, and dancing with flip-flops ..... :)

We now officially love the Napa and Sonoma areas of California!

Thanks Jordan and Anna for having your stunning wedding in

California, and for inviting us --

It was the beginning of a great 8 days!!

Ballet Competitions ~

Last spring the girls participated in their first ballet competitions.

I had mixed feelings about having them compete, but it turned into

really great experiences for all of us!

The girls from our studio danced beautifully and looked beautiful --

they all were dressed in classy, age-appropriate costumes

with classy, age-appropriate make-up. They were respectful and supportive

of each other and the other dancers, they had fun and their hard work paid off!

Ella, Isabella and Zoe performed their 'Yellow Submarine' dance and scored GOLD!

They also danced 'Do You Believe in Magic' with a group from their regular class --

For this dance they scored HIGH GOLD and ranked #8 for their age-group.

Very exciting!!

Later in the spring the three girls performed their 'Yellow Submarine' trio again --

This time they scored Elite High Gold and were first place in their category.

They also won the 'Terrific Teamwork" award from the judges -- what an honor!!

After such an early morning Ella and Zoe went over to Bella's house and Berkis mad them a 'Breakfast of the Champions', and they had time to play for a while. FUN times :)

The Beginning of the Adventure . . .

After trying and waiting for a long time, June 26th 2006 was the estimated due date of Baby A and Baby B. We were thrilled. But a little over 10 weeks early our doctor decided it was time for us to meet the babies. On Wednesday, April 19th at 6:49 pm, Ella Marie was born. We named her after Tom’s mom, Della Marie, and her name means 'Light'. She weighed 2 pounds 14 ounces, was 16 inches long and was perfect. At 6:51 pm, Zoë Dianne was born. We named her after my mom, Dianne, and her name means ‘Life’. She weighed 3 pounds 5 ounces, was also 16 inches long and was perfect too.

Both girls stayed in the NICU for almost 2 months and did really well, especially considering all of the 'what could have/should have beens'. It was a 'one step forward two steps backwards' type of dance those first few weeks, but after 47 days we brought Zoe home and 10 days later brought Ella home. FINALLY, we were all four under the same roof, and were ready to start the next exciting chapter in our lives . . .

Ella and Zoe turned FIVE this April and are THRIVING. They are fun, funny, naughty and sweet. The joy they bring to our lives is immeasurable. They are also really fun to take pictures of : )