Happy 11th Birthday, Nathalieland!

11 years ago I had a 5-month-old baby and was reading other moms' blogs to keep me inspired and entertained. Those blogs led me to start my own, and here I am today, with an 11-year-old Emily, a 9-year-old Jessica, a 12-year marriage, two guinea pigs, one fish, a home sweet home, and 1,520 posts that capture the many moments in between.

January 27, 2021

The traditional gift to my blog on its birthday is a new background, which was chosen this year with Emily's help!

Backgrounds through the years

10 Years

I repeat myself every year, but I am still so grateful for this blog: the history it holds, how easy it is to create posts, and the ability to navigate through the years. Thank you to those who have inspired me and hello! to those who keep checking in, browsing through our modern-day photo album.

Happy 11th Birthday, Nathalieland!

Happy 8th Birthday, Nathalieland!

I wrote my first-ever blog post on January 27, 2010. Here we are 8 years and 1,285 posts later! I can't say it enough: I am grateful for this space, allowing me to share my thoughts and experiences, sort/edit my pictures, and record the main events of the year. Even though my blogging has slowed down over the past couple of years, I can't imagine my life without it.

January 2010

January 2011

January 2012, 2013

January 2014

January 2015, 2016

January 2017

With a new year and a new blog background, why not add a new haircut? I was definitely in the mood for a change from my typical long hair! Feels great.

And let's not forget these two sweet, beautiful, quirky, hat-wearing girls -- the entire reason for this blog's existence:

Happy 8 years, Nathalieland!

These Two...

Love these two to pieces!

Sisterhood - 44 Months In

Emily and Jessica's sibling relationship hasn't changed much over the last six months, but it's always nice to keep track and collect a few pictures of them together. Here is what they're up to:

- They are still best friends, they love each other very much, and they play really well together.

- Jessica still insists that they will marry each other when they're older (I think Emily is having second thoughts). Jessica casually told this to my dental hygienist last week, explaining that she and Emily already know so much about each other. Hilarious!

-  Some things that Emily and Jessica enjoy doing together: playing outside, colouring, playing with (and trading) stuffed toys, and most recently, watching Mommy and Daddy play Mario Bros Wii.
 

- One major difference between these two sisters is that Jessica is really into feminine things like nail polish, lip gloss, earrings, accessories, dresses, etc, whereas Emily doesn't care much for any of it.

- Emily is already excited at the thought of Jessica going to school with her in the Fall. She excitedly tells Jessica all the details -- like how they'll get to see each other at recess. I'll bet having a big sister at school will help with the transition!

- I asked the girls a couple of questions for their Sisterhood post. Funny the answers they come up with:

Q: What do you like best about your sister?
E: That she's my sister.
J: That she has blue eyes.

Q: Is there anything your sister does that makes you angry/sad?
E: I don't like it when Jessi doesn't stop but I ask her to stop.
J: When she doesn't make a noise but I want her to make a noise.

Q: What is your favourite thing to do together?
E: Colour.
J: Play Snakes and Ladders. (Note: they haven't played this game in months, and I'm pretty sure that when they did, Emily quit because Jessica was getting upset about losing. Ha!) 

- These girls are too cute for words!

Merry Christmas!

Share the love...

... the hugs...

... the kisses...

... the sillies... 

... and the laughter this year.

Merry Christmas from Nathalieland!

xox

The Hugging Game

Ladies and gentlemen, this has got to be one of the cutest things ever. The girls made up a game called "The Hugging Game", where they continually hug each other. First they throw their arms up in the air, excitedly say each other's (made-up) names, then give each other big, long hugs. And repeat.

Some examples of the made up names they shout are "Chatterbox!" "Chatterbrain!" *Hug*. Or "Hugaboo!" "Bugaboo!" *Hug*.

They played this game for a solid 15 minutes; I can't even imagine the number of time they hugged in that time. They must have realized how good it feels to be reunited with a loved one :).

Nope, don't think I could ever get tired of seeing this!

 ♥

The Sweetest Thing

Sisterhood - 38 Months In

Time for another sisterly update. Here's what Emily and Jessica's relationship is like these days:

- I feel like I say this every time, but Emily and Jessica's friendship continues to grow stronger. They're so fond of each other and love to play together all day long.

 

"Sleeping" in their "bed"

- Emily is still the boss. She knows how to talk Jessica into doing almost anything -- from trading her favourite toy to giving up her spot on the couch.

- Speaking of trading, the girls trade toys all the time. Our only rule is that the trades are not permanent, so if someone wants their toy back, they can definitely get it back.

- The girls often pretend to be famous pairs like: Elsa & Anna, Mario & Luigi, Gru & Vector, Smee & Captain Hook, Elsa & the Snow Monster, or each other (exchanging their names).

- They disagree on one very important topic: during make-believe play, Jessica believes that there can only be one Elsa, Anna, etc. whereas Emily thinks it's ok if they both play the same character ("There can be TWO Elsas!"). This typically happens because Emily doesn't want to give up who she's pretending to be, but Jessica complains that she never gets a turn being a certain character. They argue about this all the time!
 

Elsa & Anna

- A couple weeks ago the girls were playing together in the basement, and when I came down to join them, they kindly asked me to leave! Ha. The day has finally come where they don't (always) want us around!

- They tried bunk beds, but it only lasted five nights. Apparently they want to give it another try soon; we'll see if we can find a better way to make it work!

- Life with these two beauties just keeps getting better!