Up, Up, and Away

So, apparently when I rescued Xander from his knees, I came a bit too soon... because a few days later, Thursday, when I heard him call for me, I found him standing at attention, and once again, before rescuing him I had to grab the camera and take a couple pictures. What a blessing to be home with my kids, to watch them grow and develop. I am daily thankful for the Lord's provision that allows me to have this privilege.

yah! Clearly he's excited with himself and his sister here.

This is my new favorite pic...He just looks like such a champ here.

I love it.

Uncle Daniel Visits

Uncle Daniel was in town just briefly but made sure to come to our home to spend some QT with Sarah, Libby and Xander. Yes, that's essentially what he said, though my feelings weren't hurt. I know that deep down, Daniel was thrilled to hang with me too. . ... .........

Libby showed Daniel her prowess on the computer. She can be pretty impressive with her ability to manage the touchpad/mouse, and she knows it. I have to remind her that the computer is not hers, as I find her "clicking" here or there if I leave a webpage open during the day. Anyway, she was delighted to show him her favorite game (for the time being...), which is Create Your Own Superhero with Princess Presto of Super Why. PBSers, you know what I mean. Princess Presto spells out a word for Libby, Libby clicks on the appropriate letters, and when she's spelled the word she gets to pick an accessory to dress her very own superhero. Libby's superheros tend to wear a lot of pink and purple. She has SO much fun playing games like this online.

Up on His Knees

Last Sunday, just over a week shy of hitting the 8 month marker, Xander pulled up to his knees in his crib. He took a short nap and started chatting in his room. I decided to leave him alone for a bit to see if he'd go back to sleep. He was then quiet about 15 minutes, and suddenly started whining. I figured he was fully awake and walked into his room to find him perched on his knees. He must have used the quiet time to get up, then whined to call me in for a rescue. Of course, I didn't rescue him until I had gotten my camera and a few satisfactory pictures of the occasion. He was a good sport.

Libby was very excited for Xander and was happy to encourage him after accomplishing his feat. As you can tell from his face, he's thrilled and even straightened up a bit taller after receiving some attention from her. He just adores her.

Finger Foods

Believe it or not, our little man is eating finger foods... I snapped some pictures of him as he snacked on some veggie puffs. He's just as cute as can be.

Strolling out of the Museum

On Thursday, we decided to go to the Children's Museum. It's a long story, but basically I told Libby about our plan to join our friends for a picnic and play at the park. This was at 10 a.m., and we were supposed to meet at 11:00. Well, around 10:30, it started to rain. bummer... Needless to say, we were all bit disappointed so we changed our plans a bit and took our lunch to the museum for some indoor play. And, I have found that snapping pictures of kids playing is more challenging when holding a little one... So, you'll have to settle for pictures of the kids in the stroller as we were leaving. As you can see, Libby wasn't feeling too photogenic, but Xander played along.

Dance, Dance, Dance

Libby and some friends began taking a dance class last week. This is a twice weekly, month-long intro to jazz, tap and ballet for preschoolers. After two classes, Libby continues to prefer the "Easter bunny dance", which involves a bunch of hopping. I'll take more pictures as we go, but these are from her first class.

The two girls on the left are Emiliana and Kate, friends of Libby's, and Madison isn't pictured, but is becoming a prima ballerina as well.

Libby's in white, and you can see her reflection in the mirror. She was moderately hesitant to put her all into these dance moves the first night, but I think she'll loosen up as she becomes more comfortable there.

The girls do some twirling.

i'll believe it when i see it

D: Libby, guess what? We bought a new swing set for you!
L: playing it cool
D: Are you excited? I'm excited to have a new swing set!
L: Where is it?
D: Well, we don't have it yet. We bought it and now we have to go get it and bring it home.
L: When we get it, I'll give you a kiss.

Daddy's Birthday

Daddy's Birthday and our wedding day were celebrated on Friday, May 30. Daddy took mama out to a very nice and fancy steakhouse; it was a fantastic treat and a delicious dinner. We ate until we could eat no more, enjoyed one another's company, and drank two bottles of expensive water. Saturday, we celebrated with our good friends the J's and the C's. We ate one of daddy's favorite dinners: Heidi's Nebraska Grill Meatloaf, and enjoyed one of his favorite cakes: Pig Cake ("it's called pig cake because you eat up up like you're a little piggie." says libby). Then, as if all that weren't enough, we celebrated Sunday with Grandpa Larry, Aunt Sarah, Uncle Jon and Aunt Emily. It was a fun weekend and a great treat to celebrate daddy and thank the Lord for using him to bless our family.

Libby, Hudson, and Jonah eat pig cake.

Daddy received a favorite board game and Libby is eager to give it a try.

Grandpa Larry and Libby do some coloring on the deck.

Libby and Uncle Jon played some football, and she stepped in the mud.

Memorial Day Visit

Over the Memorial Day weekend, we had family visiting. Grandma Shelley, Grandad Mark, Aunt Brett and Uncle Mason (along with the doggies) spent several days with us and we had a great time. I would love Aunt Brett and Grandma Shelley to email me their pictures from the weekend so I can add them to our collection! This is what I have...

Grandma plays hide-and-seek with Libby.



and below are pictures of Libby and Grandma planting purple daisies. Grandma brought them for Libby to plant and keep in a little pail and Libby was so looking forward to this project all weekend long. She checks the plant daily for new buds and open flowers and is thankful when "God saw that I had a new flower and wanted to send me rain for it!"

Bounce U

The next week we joined the ladies and kids from OBC at Bounce U, and bounced until we couldn't bounce any longer (because our time was up).

Playday at the Park

I know it's been a while. Quite a while... too long, really. But here are some pictures of the kiddos with a bit of an update on our lives over the past couple of weeks. We'll start with our playday at the park, which was intended to be on an afternoon with several other ladies and kids from church, but Xander required a nap that caused us to get there as everyone else was packing up. Thankfully, we all still had a great time!

Is the wind messing up my hair?

More Talk

Last night when daddy got home from work he had some information from the YMCA that was offered to him at the office. Libby said, "How was your test daeyaddy?" (she has a new southern accent. it's incredibly cute, though i'm not sure when she was last in georgia....). She remembered that he had a cholesterol test that morning. He told her about it and we read the results to her. She read about the YMCA on one of the papers he had, and by reading I mean that she announces each letter in the words and then we sound them out. Well, she was reading the name of daddy's firm and she sounded out the first word then moved on and sounded out the second, and when she finished she said, "Hey.... like where daddy lives!" Yes, it was so sad and funny at the same time. Daddy's comment: I think that's probably blogworthy. Then he apologized to her and explained that he doesn't actually live at the firm. (in his defense, he's not there all that much, but to Libby it must seem like he's always there.)

Picture this: it's a rainy day, and only about 50 degrees. We went out to do some shopping, so we experienced the cool water. We're now in the van and driving along when not too far in the distance Libby sees two teenage girls walking, and from the back seat I hear:
"What. are. those. girls. doing. wearing. shorts!!!?" (pauses between each word for dramatic effect) I tell her I don't know, but poor girls, they're probably cold. She agrees, "I don't know what those girls are thinking. That's a mystery."

L: Do you know that when I grow up I want to be just like daddy?

L: Mom! Do you know that I have tiny little hairs on my arms?

Mama is on a restricted diet for the sake of Xander, and I'm not eating anything with dairy or soy proteins in them. So, this eliminates many many foods, more than just sweet and sour chicken or ice cream as you might initially think. Well, Libby has caught on to this and as she has become more... discriminate in her tastes, she explains to me before many (too many) dinners, "I can't have that. I can't have _______ (sauce, banana cookies... only sliced bananas, etc.) My baby can't have that yet." Seems to work for mama, why couldn't it work for her?

okay, time to go read to my biggest little lovebug and get ready for naps!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day! Mama was sick sick sick with sinus infection, so the day was pretty simple. After church daddy and the kids took me out for pasta, and Libby ate with chopsticks. The funny thing is, she picked them up and used them perfectly. Then she started playing around with them and I got this picture of her. The sad thing is, I didn't get any pictures of me with my kids on mother's day. So, this is what you get. Anyway, after lunch and a long afternoon nap for mama, Grandpa and Grandma and Em came over for dinner. It was a good day. Also, I got a really special card and gift from Daddy and the kids. This year Libby picked it all out by herself and she was so excited about the holiday and the chance to go shopping for mama. It was very sweet. She disagreed with daddy's gift selection (she'll tell you what he wanted to get me) and got her way, choosing for me a beautiful turquoise necklace. She told me this morning while looking at it, "I'm thankful someone found these rocks and put them in a necklace for you." She's so beautiful.

May showers bring.... er, wait.

Spring has finally sprung. I think I may have thought that back in March/April when we had a week of nice weather, and then it was cold and wintery for far too long. However, the past couple of weeks have stayed 60+ (mostly 70s and 80s) and it seems almost (almost) certain that spring has sprung and we just may eventually see summer. Needless to say, this mama has had her fill of winter this winter.

Last weekend mama made a delivery and daddy stayed with the kiddos in the car. It was raining and this is a photo that Libby captured that I thought was pretty cool.

Friends and Pals

Our friends Brian and Casey ("but not my daddy Brian") came to visit us on their way through Omaha. They were our original roommates; they moved into our house the same week we did and spent the summer of 2006 with us. Well, Brian and Casey have recently welcomed Carter Rex into the world, and here he is at 7 weeks. He is such a sweet baby, with a full head of hair. He was such a good boy and and been flying all morning to get here from DC.

Later that day, we went to the J's house to celebrate Nick's bday. Libby was very excited for the cake, which did not disappoint. (It looked like an iPod, see pictures here.) While dinner was being prepared, the babies played together. Maren already mothers Xander. She's been seen patting his bottom, and has given him many a kiss. He doesn't seem to mind. :)

Two Tooths

You can see his left tooth, and will have to take my word for it, he has his right one too! Two cute.

Aunt Sarah Graduated!

Congratulations, sister, Aunt, and roomie. You have graduated from Physical Therapy School and we are so excited for you!

L: banging on her drum
X: giggling and watching big sister with awe
M: Libby, you're doing a great job. And look at Xander, he thinks you're a great musician!
L: What's a musician?
M: Someone who makes music.
L: Well, I'm not really because I can't even hold a tune.