Chalk, grandparents, and glasses…

"I like it!"
-James

The playhouse continues to get a great deal of use by the kids.  To make it their own, they took some time this week to decorate it with some original chalk artwork.  They’re very proud.

It’s with a heavy heart that I report the loss of something dear in our house.  The poor remote control helicopter, a source of much entertainment by myself and the kids, has met an untimely demise at the hands of a 20 month old boy who doesn’t understand that he should let up on the throttle when the helicopter is banging into the ceiling and walls.  Helicopter, you will be missed.

I don’t want to leave you in a sad state, so here’s some pictures of James and Ashlyn playing happily together.  As long as they keep playing, I’ll keep posting pictures.

These next pictures have nothing to do with anything really, it’s just James with glasses.

I was not a good photographer on Saturday when we went to Grandma and Grandpa Wolfe’s house to celebrate Aunt Tracy’s birthday.  Not only did I need to borrow Grandpa’s camera since I forgot to bring ours, I didn’t take a single picture of the kids with Aunt Tracy.  Oops.  On the plus side, I was able to get some good pictures of them playing with Grandma and Grandpa, of James pretending to take a nap and then shoving food in Grandpa’s face, and of the kids dancing together around the house.  Overall, I’ll call it a win.

For the new baby Mom has decided it’s time to make the move to cloth diapers.  They’re better for the environment, cheaper in the long run, and it gives her the opportunity to buy lots of things off the Internet.  When she read that you can turn old receiving blankets (which we have boxes of) into cloth wipes, the sewing machine was brought out of the closet and wipes were made.  Ashlyn got in on the fun too, and I’ll admit I enjoyed watching the two of them making something together.

Luckily we had the camera with us when Nina and Papa came over on Sunday.  They took a walk around the lake while Mom finished making the wipes and I made some enchiladas.  Someday I hope the kids realize how lucky they are to have loving grandparents in their lives that they get to see on a regular basis.

Only 161 days until our family is complete!

Valentines, swings, and parties…

"My motto was always to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was keep swinging."
-Hank Aaron

James cracks us up, when he’s fed and rested he’s a funny little guy who makes games out of anything and everything he can get his hands on.  Here’s James with a pile of pinto beans and a bracelet.  Mom thinks he’s going to be the class clown.

Valentines Day came and went with a pile of candy, a visit from Grandma that included cookies, and a sugar rush that sent Ashlyn running around the house and James walking in circles saying “Daboo” over and over again.  James is speaking regularly in 3-4 word sentences now, but sugar makes him revert back to babbles.

When brother and sister are getting a lot, it’s great to be around them.  This week they dug out Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head, but used the pieces on themselves instead of the spuds.  The results speak for themselves.  It’s good to be a kid sometimes.

Saturday was Birthday Party Day for one of Ashlyn’s friends.  The parents asked us to bring James as well, so we piled everyone into the car and headed to Mia’s house.  Ashlyn was shy as always when we got there, but quickly got over it and was running around the house running and screaming with the rest of the “Fab 5” (as another parent called them).  At least I think that’s what she said, my ears were ringing most of the time from the high pitched screams.  James tried to hang out with the girls, but ended up crawling out the window to get away.  I’ll admit that it’s still strange to watch Ashlyn with her friends, it keeps reminding me that she won’t be ours forever.

With the weather turning nice on Sunday we decided it would be a good day to finish up the swing set.  A big thanks goes to PePa who spent the day with us putting it together.  There’s no way we could have finished it without him.  We didn’t get every piece completed, but the main parts are there:  swings, tower, table, and slide.

The real test of course is how the kids like it.  The kids spent the rest of the afternoon swinging, sliding, and climbing (sometimes in that order).  Monday was a teacher in-service day, and Mom reported that the kids spent almost all day outdoors with only minimal injuries.  Mission success!