chicago... friends... a good time!

Yes, we braved it and took a trip with both kids... and we couldn't have picked a more perfect place to go. First of all, we love getting some time with Jaclyn and Joshua. We say over and over how sad it is that we live so close and never see each other... we've now discovered that it is also sad because we have such a great time with them! Once you have kids, it is often difficult to spend time with friends who don't have kids because we feel like we have turned their peaceful world upside down. But J&J did not make us feel this way at all and almost seemed to enjoy our kids. And their is no doubt that Ava loves herself some Jaclyn! Anderson is probably a little more Joshua's speed. I have a TON of fun pictures to post, but I am exhausted as I am still catching up from not sleeping Saturday night because Jacs and I couldn't stop blabbering... imagine that! :) There are just a few... starting with the view from J&J's living room.... seriously!?!? It was amazing. Greg and I and our simple little life here in Indiana felt like we were on some sort of luxury vacation. It was too fun and I will blog more pics of the rest of the trip soon. Love you J&J... this blogs for you!

easter...

Here are the best of my easter pics of the kiddos. Hard to believe people pay me to take photos of their kids and I don't seem to have any trouble getting those photos, but can I get one picture of my kids looking at me and smiling... not if I tried all day long. But, they are still fun and I am certain the memories will be with me forever. They are both getting big fast and Greg and I have to remind each other often that they are ours. "We have two kids," he said to me just tonight. Sometimes it does feel surreal.... but good... really good. It was a pretty low key easter this year. We went to church and had easter dinner with Greg's parents and granny. We spent the rest of the day playing outside with the kids. We rode the 4-wheeler and granny's golf cart, lovingly called 'the buggy', and chased Oscar around the yard for hours. Both kids were asleep well before we got back to the house.

glimpses of spring...

Yesterday and today were heaven! I woke up this morning to the birds singing outside our open window, I didn't wear a jacket, and we attached Anderson's baby swing to the swingset so we could spend some time outside. When it starts to get warm out I feel like I get these bursts of energy and I just overall feel more motivated and happier. This must be common as it seems like everywhere we go everyone is smiling more and the world is a happier place to be. The kids are definitely enjoying getting outside and not being cooped up in the house... and they actually enjoy being together. Although Ava did make him bleed for the first time today! "I was being Ariel and Anderson was Flounder..." she explained. Somewhere along the way, Flounder ended up with his front teeth implanted into Ariel's forehead. Unfortunately his two front teeth are new arrivals and weren't quite completely broken through the gums... they are now!

worth the injury...

Nope... neither of the three cuties hanging out in the snow was injured. I collided with our banister as I ran upstairs to get my boots so that I could go outside and take these pictures. Though, three days later, my knee is still bruised, swollen and sore - it was completely worth it! I love these guys!!

they make me smile!

been too long...

I used to use basketball and masters as an excuse for not posting often enough in the winter, but I think it is clear that it is just the winter that makes me unable to find the energy to blog. We've all been a little tired lately as well as had our new year bouts of the flu and sinus infections. I can't believe that Valentine's Day is almost here. Latest kids stuff...

Ava has developed this bizarre fixation on death... she asks at least one question a day that relates in some way to death. This began when papa passed away towards the end of last year and has continued since then as we have attended one other funeral since then. She asks about it in relation to all of her movies... where did the witch go? Did she die? Will she come back? I am trying to not let it worry as she doesn't seem scared about it - just really curious. She eats anything she comes in contact with and continues to get taller, but no wider. She comes home every day and proceeds to put on one of her many princess/fairy costumes and a pile of jewelry, a crown, and high heals. She already loves to put on shows for us and especially enjoys playing the drum set (yes, a REAL drum set) that she got for Christmas. She is a HUGE help with her little brother. She loves to feed him (and eat some of the baby food herself) as well as make him laugh by jumping on his mattress and watching him bounce up and down. We are certain it probably is not very good for his little body, but he giggles the whole time nonetheless.

Anderson is a happy little guy. He wakes up jabbering to himself in his bed, rolls and scoots from one end of the room to the other grabbing anything he can get his hands on, and eats anything and everything we put in front of him. This month he sprouted two teeth and and wants so badly to crawl he can hardly stand it - doesn't get mad though. He gets up on all fours and rocks back and forth. He really only cries when he's hungry though I would describe it more as fussing than crying. He is working on hair, but so far it refuses to lay down and he already has his daddy's cowlick in the back. Right now all of his pants are highwaters as he is in the 95th percentile for height. He is already wearing 12 month pants! We can't yet tell exactly what color his eyes will be... sometimes they look blue, but in the last month they have developed a hazelness to them. He loves to be sung too. Greg sings 'hush little baby' to him when he is tired and he immediately lays his head down and snuggles into his shoulder. It is priceless!

Ah, my life... as I have been writing this I have had to pick up Anderson and he is sitting on my lap trying to grab the keyboard ...

ipkm., nm (that was him)

and ava is sitting on the back of my chair, facing the tv watching Tinkerbell. Suppose I will have to add pictures later because this is not working! :)

one more...

I can't believe this little guy is almost 4 months old. He could not be any easier if he tried and he is so smiley these days. He adores his big sister and this week he started rolling from his belly to his back. We didn't know he could until I went upstairs to get him one morning and he was on his back smiling at me when I came in his room. He sleeps between 8-10 hours a night and eats like a champ. I am amazed at how fast he is growing and this smile kills me!!

Happy Halloween...

Tinker Bell and the three-eyed monster had a fantastic Halloween at mimi and papa's house! Anderman was his normal go-with-the-flow self and Ava was her normal intense self. She had a wand that went with this costume, but Oscar chewed it up three days before Halloween. As a last minute solution (when she realized she didn't have her wand) we cut up purple and gold ribbon and put it in a plastic bag. This little bag turned out to be the highlight of trick-or-treating as each person who gave her candy was sprinkled with fairy dust. Anderson smiled through the trip around the block- even as it became colder and colder. It was a very fun night!

HAPPY, HAPPY, FALL!

We took our yearly trip to Tuttles for some FABULOUS apple picking! Matt even came home and made use some apple crisp that I am certain was gone in 24 hours and my husband just handed me a bowl of homemade apple pie and vanilla ice cream! (yes, he made it - not me!) Watching the Colts kick Arizona's butts and eating warm apple pie - heaven! Here are a couple shots from our trip to the orchard and I will be posting some photos of our trip to Illinois this weekend very soon. Thank you so much to Jen and Ken for their hospitality and a special shout out to Jake and Alex for entertaining Ava and making her feel so special. We wish we could see you all more often, but look forward to Thanksgiving!!

more summer sun...

sissy and bubby...

She calls him bubby. I don't know why but she won't even let Greg and I call him bubby... "he's my bubby" she tells us. The first question people ask me these days is how she is with him. Really, she is amazing with him. She doesn't seem to be jealous hardly at all. The only thing she says is when Greg or I tell Anderson we love him, she will give us this terribly pouty face and ask sadly "don't you love me?" As soon as we reassure her that we love her too - she smiles and moves on. This afternoon was absolutely beautiful so we pulled out a blanket and spent some time in the sunshine. Love these kiddos!!