Summer 2012 Fun!

Well we've been having so much fun this summer that we've hardly thought of posting...we're not going to try and catch up on all that has happened but we are going to do a BIG double birthday post later this week. Until then enjoy two pics of the kids. They are growing so fast. Life is sweet!

Joseph's 10 month pictures (from a few weeks ago)

Joseph is 11 months old today! Growing so big...he is even beginning to stand on his own and wants to walk, but he's not quite ready yet. We'll have his 11th month pictures up soon, but until then enjoy some of his fun (10) daffodil and block pictures.

Quick costume change here...we had a diaper malfunction...happens to the best of us.

Easter 2012

Easter can be rainy around these parts, but April has been shaping up to be a beautiful month in the NW and that weekend was no exception. Sunny skies and sunny faces greeted us for a little easter egg hunt. Annie takes her egg gathering serious and had put on her game face even before the kids were set loose to find their treasures. I tried to encourage baskets on all of the kids heads but some were less willing than others...oh well.

Annie and one of her friends combing through the blooming daffodils that grow on the western side of our house.

Joseph was content with this oversized "egg" that he bandied around the back yard...

That weekend also afforded the first time to crack open the old sandbox...for Joseph this was a whole new landscape and of course something to be touched, tossed and tasted. (yuck!)

Annie was making some of her famous Strawberry soup and insisted on other partaking in her creation. Fortunately she is ok with pretend eating, as long as we let her know how good the soup is.

Sunday afforded another beautiful day and another easter hunt.

Our pretty pensive princess...a wonderful day was had by all.

More pictures coming soon. Enjoy the Spring and get those flowers and veggies in the ground...grow grow grow!

Darla and the kids back east: Time with her sister's family

Darla and the kids went back east for about 8 days in mid March. The first part of the trip they spent with my parents (Steve's) and the later portion of the trip was spent with Darla's sister, brother-in-law and their two kids. We're working on getting more pictures from the first leg of the trip but until then here are some fun shots from fun with uncle, aunt and cousins!

Actually these first two pictures are at my parents house...two tired little turkeys zonked out out after a long flight.




Annie and her cousin Georgie had fun playing in the dirt together



Annie released her inner artist or she might be drawing a graph of the economic outlook for the euro and the yen. Looks a little shaky.



And part of the time was spent at a Georigie's 4th birthday party! Annie and Hugh are hanging out discussing how pretty the long shadows are.



Birthday Girl!



Enjoying the party!



Conquering yet another playground structure.



Cousin Time: Annie and Georgie



Hugh and Joseph (Joseph is SOOOOOO pale...its like he lives in a state that is overcast and raining all the time...wait a minute)



Joseph showing off some of his crawling and ball handling skills.



Oh I can't wait 'til I'm old enough to run around!



Ahhhh cousins gotta hug! Two of the sweetest little girls.

Joseph: Nine Months and Seven teeth

Joseph is the big 09 this month, he's been out as long as he was inside growing...so I guess he's really 18 months old. He continues to be all smiles. He has seven teeth to grin at us with. Newest traits are...crawling forward and pulling himself up on furniture. Let the mobility begin! More Annie and Joesph pictures soon from their trip back east with Darla.

Wigs + Fake Mustaches + Little Kids= Good times, good times (plus a bonus pic)

Recently we had a party at the house and one of the bonus features of the party was a box of dress up clothes and some stick on mustaches. Well, as you can tell, we couldn't help ourselves and it is pretty much a crack up...ENJOY!

This could have been some sort of tribute photo to Sonny and Cher, but we weren't that organized about it. We were wondering if this is what Joseph will look like if he gets the same kind of curls that Annie has.

This is Hal the 56 year-old bus driver who still wears diapers and drools. HA!

Early this morning (March 1, 2012) we got about a 1/4 inch of snow and so Annie got her boots on right out bed and brought her baby doll out to explore the white wonderland.

Brief retrospective (some cute shots from November and December 2011

Annie loves her little brother...he loves her too, he's just not always sure about her hugs (or near strangulation attempts)

Early November and some great afternoon light...and a mostly cooperative baby Joseph

Annie LOVES her big girl bed and so do her stuffed animals and little babies...she takes GOOD care of them.

Peek-er-Boo! (What Annie sometimes says.) He loves playing hide and seek!

Another great light day...Darla snapped a bunch of photos of him sitting in his highchair playing with a little beaded necklace, you can just see him trying to figure things out.

Was it Measles or...

...a pomegranate.

Taking a quiet hike through some of the foggy woods south of our house. Annie and I had a close up look at a woodpecker. Then Annie wanted to learn how to run on the trail: pick your feet up and watch where you're going...she's a great trail runner...only one small spill and even then she was back up and ready to run some more.

Daddy and daughter...Washing dishing and talking...how better to spend a winter's eve.

If you ever need some disposable glasses, you might want to consider what all the kids will be wearing this Spring... Pretzels.