Walking

Hannah is taking more steps!

Double Trouble

The school year has officially begun, which means the end of my summer vacation/maternity leave.  My workload has doubled this time with the additions of Jackson and Hannah.  Before you start thinking I'm crazy, I won't have four kids (ages four and under) all day every day.  Micah will be in preschool two mornings a week, and Carter will be in all-day preschool two days a week.  Plus, Meghan's parents watch them occasionally.  So two mornings a week it will just be these two cuties:

Unfortunately for now, their nap schedules alternate.  Until Hannah drops her second nap, we'll be mostly housebound.  But if every day was sunny and seventy degrees like today was, that would be no problem!  The big boys spent a good chunk of their day outside: riding bikes in the garage, building a carboard fort, and digging in the dirt (which necessitated both of them getting in the bathtub afterward).  The little ones were happy and cooperative inside, and I took them out when I could.

crashing the "tunnel"

Who knew?  The styrofoam in the box was more entertaining than building things with the box itself.

The Fair

Wednesday night we set out for the Portage County Fair. After touring the various animal barns and tractor exhibits, Micah got to choose one ride.

Hannah watching her big brother

After the ride, the next big decision was which snack to get.  Micah went with the elephant ear. (Hannah and I helped him eat it.)  Then he also got to have a deep-fried oreo from Daddy.  Mmm...healthy.  :)

can you tell that the elephant ear had cinnamon sugar on it?

"Crazy"

Hannah has two primary nicknames: "Hannah-Banana" (because it's fun to say) and "Crazy" (because she's a little bit crazy). :)



she was screaming happily and rubbing food in her hair



A few weeks ago when I dropped her off at the church nursery, the volunteer said, "I remember Hannah.  She's a climber, right?"  She has a reputation already. :)

Today she also climbed to the top of the playland at Chick-fil-a and all the way up the ladder on our playset in the backyard.

My Fan Club

Here is my adorable and supportive family.  My wonderful husband used his lunch break to go buy a bike seat from Craigslist.  He left work a little early to come home and bolt the seat to his bike.  He skipped dinner to make sure we had enough daylight.  And he pulled both kids at a painfully slow speed just to keep me company and encourage me while I ran.  He's the best.  :)

Retreat

Sara, Sarah, Neiva, Meghan, Jennie, and me

This weekend I attended a women's retreat.  Let's be clear, though - this "retreat" was not one of those weekends with a spiritual theme, scheduled speakers, and formal agendas.  Think more along the lines of retreating from a battle.  As in: wave the white flag, run away, we give up!!  We all have amazing husbands and wonderful children, but everybody needs a break sometimes.  It was quite liberating to empty the van of car seats, diaper bags, and goldfish and fill it with five wonderful friends (who can all buckle their own seat belts!)  We had a wonderful time talking, laughing, eating, sleeping, and just recharging our batteries. Now we're back and ready to be super-moms again.  :)

3 1/2

Micah can now proudly say that he is three-and-a-half!
Yeah, the squinty fake smile face is not great, but that's life.  Adding to the beauty of the picture is his collection of necklaces and multiple "Cars" tattoos on his arms.
One of Micah's favorite activities these days is listening to tapes in his room. (Yes, tapes!)  It makes me smile to hear him jumping, dancing, singing, and laughing.

HSL

"HSL" is "Hannah Sign Language".  Not to be confused with "ASL" - American Sign Language.  The ASL sign for "please" is an open hand on the chest.  The HSL sign is:

A Step or Two

This past weekend we were traveling again.  We went to Arlington National Cemetery for my grandmother's memorial service.  (She passed away in March, but the service was delayed because of administration backup at Arlington.) It was really neat to be there for the ceremony with my extended family.

After the ceremony, we all had dinner together before driving two more hours to Chambersburg, PA, where my aunt and uncle graciously offered to let us overtake their house.  Just like at Easter, being confined to her carseat for hours on end inspired Hannah to start moving.  This time she's taking some steps!  She has only taken one or two at a time, but she's on her way to walking!

The Amazing Garden

Today we went to The Amazing Garden Plant Exploratorium. I told Micah we were lucky to be going with Meghan because she is much more knowledgable about plants and gardens than I am. It turns out, Carter is a bit of an expert also! In the first garden he easily identified tomatoes, cabbage, basil, and more!

checking out the greenery

smelling flowers together

digging up some vegetables at the learning stations

The big attraction was the butterfly house.  We used sugar water and q-tips to try to get the butterflies to land on us.

It was neat to see all the different stages of a butterfly's life in one place.

It was warm and breezy, making it very nice to sit outside and eat lunch before heading back home.

Flying Babies

Moms, you know how sometimes the dads do things that you think maybe aren't all that safe? But if you try to say anything you get a "I've got it." or "Relax." or "It's not that high."? Well, this picture is proof that it IS that high!!

it was so high that it took me a couple of tries to get all of her in the shot

as you can see, she LOVES it

 Micah is a bit bigger and heavier (and more scared), so he doesn't get as much hang-time.

 

 

More Sleeping

We'll just call this one the "icing on the cake."  This picture is not posed.  He is sound asleep...standing up.

Not to be left out - Hannah, emptying my cabinets.

Fort

Micah and Daddy's after-dinner activity last night was building a fort.

Sorry, Hannah, no girls allowed!