What's Happening Around Here

Time sure flies with a baby and 2 busy boys. We had a great Easter a few weeks ago. Leah made it through her first church service (slept the whole time), but missed out on the Easter Egg hunt-hopefully she'll be up and moving a bit this time next year.

Leah's first Eater picture. Her Easter dress only lasted about 30 minutes before she dirtied it, Fortunately she had another somewhat dressy outfit to put on as a back up.

I can't believe how big these 2 boys are getting.

Luke participated in our annual neighborhood egg hunt (Ryan had a soccer game).

Ryan had a blast hunting for eggs in our backyard. Both boys were excited that I hid the eggs in much more difficult places this year - they needed some help at times to find them all.

Leah's first Easter basket.

Greg is so good about dying Easter eggs with the boys each year. I'm glad to not have to mess with this tradition.

As far as Ryan and Luke are concerned, no family picture is complete without a silly face pose.

Leah's 2 month old picture. She is such a fun baby - laid back and happy most of the time.

She also loves her bath - it's like a mini spa day.

I could take a million pictures of these 3 together.

Leah has the best 2 brothers. They are so good with her and love to entertain her and keep her happy.

Ryan is so ready to be able to pick his sister up and carry her around the house. He really wants her to sleep in her own bed at night and be the one to hear her wake up so he can bring her to me to eat in the middle of the night. Her neck is getting stronger every day, so hopefully he will be able to pick her up soon.

Luke is so good at talking to and singing to Leah. Here he is playing peek-a-boo with her. He has also mastered the Itsy Bitsy Spider.

I adore this little girl - she is such a doll.

Other things going on:

Luke was selected to participate in a school art show. His teacher liked how he chose to create a very unique instrument piece - the rest of his classmates all made a saxophone or trumpet - Luke chose a lyre, because he loves Greek mythology (more like obsessed with all things Greek).

Ryan was in a play this past week. He played the role of DogBoy (a superhero). He did such a great job-I'm proud of how willing he is to try new things and put himself out there.

We also played a 3 day game of Monopoly. I don't think I've every played an entire game of Monopoly before. Greg was the first to go out when he had to go out of town, Luke was the first to declare bankruptcy, and Ryan's strategy of buying Park Place and Boardwalk and loading them up with houses and hotels almost paid off for him. He was very disappointed when I ended up cleaning him out when he landed on my properties.

Leah has started to talk. She has also really turned on the smiles in the past week. You can tell that she wants to talk more and is trying so hard to get the words out. We love her sweet little voice.

Spring Break Road Trip

Leah survived her first road trip with flying colors. We headed to Lubbock for Spring Break in order to meet some family. It was also a good time for us to visit - once the summer starts, we tend to be busy with the swim team an other activities for most of the summer. What normally takes us about 8 hours, only took us about 10 with a baby. Leah did great. She didn't really cry except for about the last 15 minutes going to Lubbock and coming home. We stopped twice to feed her and she slept the rest of the way. Ryan and Luke are pros at this trip, so there are never any problems with them other than the iPad battery not lasting long enough.

Olivia was very excited to meet her youngest cousin - she is the oldest of the grandkids so it is neat to these two together-they are 12 years apart.

Jacob was great with Leah. I wasn't sure how he would react, but he was so eager to meet her.

Once the cousins had made their introductions, the 4 older ones took off and quickly bonded again and created their own crazy games. The weather was nice and they spent most of the week playing outside riding scooters and bikes. It is so nice to have them all at this age where they can roam free outside with minimal supervision and adult interference. There are always conflicts, but they've gotten so much better and settling things among themselves.

Conny had planned to visit us and meet Leah, but she got very sick right before Leah was born - she ended up burning through all of her time off and really should stay close to home and continue to get better for awhile. I think she's excited to have a second niece, we've been surrounded mostly by crazy boys.

Another reason for our trip was to introduce Leah to her Great Aunt Jane and Great Uncle Charlie. They have both been a big part of my family growing up and they've always been very supportive and loving in all things. Leah's middle name is in honor of Jane-I hope she will develop Jane's selfless and loving nature.

Jane has many great qualities - one of them being an excellent cook and a chicken fried steak expert. She knows that is my favorite and had us all over one night for dinner. The day before, I spent time with Jane while she taught me how to make MeeMaw rolls (my grandmother's recipe). The dinner was excellent!

My dad came along for the lesson and spent part of the time sleeping with Leah.

We have visited the pottery place during many visits to Lubbock. I like to make mementos with my kids' foot/handprints - so this time was Leah's turn. She was not happy to have her feet painted with purple paint. The other kids had a great time painting their own creations - Grandad joined in the fun, too.

Overall, it was a great trip. I loved spending time with my family and introducing Leah to the beauty of Lubbock (which would be the people, not the scenery).

 Leah continues to make her case as the world's greatest baby.She is laid back and is usually fine with going along with anything. 

Catching Up

We've had a good and busy past couple of weeks. Leah continues to grow and we've become more used to her being a part of our family to the point now that we'd be lost without her. She's an absolute delight and has had little problem going with the flow around here. 

Ryan and Luke completed their first year in Destination Imagination. Greg was very involved in a similar program called Odyssey of the Mind when he was in middle school. He has thought that the boys would really enjoy a similar program that would allow them to show off their creative tendencies. I ended up as Team Manager, along with one other mom (the only other working mom of the group-somehow the stay at home moms were too busy) and we've been meeting with a total of six 3rd graders every week since the beginning of November. Overall, the group did great. They all got along and created their own creative Feary Tale (a fairy tale about a phobia). For their first year (and with 2 inexperienced Team Managers) they ended up in 11th out of 23 teams in the elementary school level. 

Fortunately, Nana was able to be with us during the DI competition day. She came back to help me while Greg was gone for a week in New Orleans. She was a super big help the whole time - but especially on that day which allowed me and Greg to spend the day with Ryan and Luke - it was almost like old times.

Nana was even kind enough to text me several pictures of her and Leah's day.

Leah is a girl of many faces. She reminds us of Luke in that way. But once Luke hit about 6 months old to about a year and a half  he only had 2 faces - stoic and a smile. We hope that Leah will keep her many expressions. She hasn't really started smiling on purpose yet - but when she starts, she is going to have a very cute one once she really means it. My mom claims that she got a genuine smile out of her, but I didn't see it, so I don't believe it (really, I'm wanting her to smile for me first).

Ryan set up a Hot Chocolate Stand a couple of weeks ago. He saw a story on the news about a boy in Denver who had done the same to raise money for Children's Hospital. Ryan was determined to create his own. By the time I got up the next morning, he had already taken out his table and chair to the curb and Greg had given him a thermos of hot water and hot chocolate mix. I texted some of my work colleagues and one of them came over to buy some hot chocolate - it totally made his day. I've decided that from now on, I should always stop for any kid who has a lemonade or whatever stand. Overall, Ryan made $10 - half of which was from me and Greg buying cups of hot chocolate from him. I think he was pleased.

We've tried to continue the Sunday night cooking classes for the last few weeks - it doesn't happen every week, but we've done our best. Ryan selected homemade pizza a couple of weeks ago. We made the dough and the pizza sauce together and Ryan then added the toppings.

Luke created a centerpiece and personalized nameplates for our dinner last week. 

Leah has her own nameplate, as well. She joins us at the table in her high chair when she is awake. She likes to be around everyone else.

Above is a great example of how completely different these 2 boys are. Ryan is playing soccer again this season (yay!) and Luke spent his time during the game writing poetry next to the little river. 

Davis has also accepted that Leah is here to stay. He is the most tolerant cat ever, but he also isn't willing to give up our laps just because she is around. 

Spring Break started yesterday and I successfully took all 3 children on an outing by myself. We spent the morning at the zoo without any major problems. Leah slept most of the time and the boys were very helpful and patient while I maneuvered her and the crowds. When we got in the car to come home, Ryan said "Good job, Mama."

A moment of zen: a video of Leah and her pacifier. She is quite talented.

One is never too young for a cool pair of sunglasses.