Arizona Trip

I recently flew to Phoenix to meet my new nephew... it was my first excursion without Brian or the kids! While it was tempting to take photos of the beautiful desert landscape - gorgeous blue skies, perfect temps. - I limited pics. to our fun together.

Jenny, Rich, baby Jonah & their first "child" Payton the dog :)
Jonah is a delightful baby... really & truly the best disposition of any baby I've met!
oooohhh... can I bring him home with me???

with Nana & Jenny at lunch before doing some damage at the outlet mall...

Big brother Jameson is getting so handsome & cracked lots of smiles! I had a great time with my two gorgeous nephews... the trip went all too fast. Thanks again for having me!

PS - You may have heard me mention Ian thinks baby Jonah & baby Jesus are one in the same. Not really sure why... but Jonah is unusually angelic! :) Ian is frustrated that pics. of the baby don't reveal his angel wings. Well, when I returned from my trip he was very interested to hear what heaven was like. He thought the airplane went up in the sky (to heaven) and landed on a cloud. I love the innocent ideas of childhood.

Spring is here!

You can tell we're in happy spirits after a few days of no jackets! Keep those blue skies coming, it's been a long winter!

Tid Bits: Ian had a "practice preschool" day today. He was SO EXCITED until we got there. It was a free Child Development Day at our elementary school in which experts evaluated the kids individually & discussed the findings w/ the parents. It took an hour and was really quite cool. I had to leave Ian after only a few minutes & he did awesome. He didn't realize he was being tested b/c he was having too much fun! Our findings: Ian is right on track w/ a recommendation for speech therapy if his speech doesn't improve w/in a few months. Oddly, it wasn't for the reason I thought which was pronouncing certain sounds. It was b/c he has trouble w/ appropriate word order. I guess we're also supposed to be learning to use a scissors & get an art easel to encourage his limited interest in putting pen to paper :) So proud of our kiddo!

Daddy & Audrey snuggling after a long day at the Wildlife Sanctuary. She's a perfect angel... when she's not having a temper tantrum :)

Sweet Nothing's

Recently Ian's been on a pendulum of either being completely sweet... or extra stubborn. He's at this magical age of saying some incredible things (good AND bad) hahaha. I wanted to share some cuteness...

While going potty one night he demanded a drink of water. We complied. He exclaimed his pee was stuck since it didn't make an immediate appearance. I explained his body was like a computer and needed to "process" the water first...? (Keep in mind I'm answering a million random questions a day). Now whenever he goes potty he delights in the idea, "My pee is in a computer!"

We just replaced his big pillow with a child size one - and I made him a fun "monster" pillow case for it. He was beyond thrilled - but his first thought: "I like it mommy but it's not big enough." Why? "There's not enough room for your head too."

Ian launched into a big discussion at bedtime about God. He asked, "How did God make me?" I told him that every baby is a miracle... it's like magic. Then he whispered excitedly, "Mommy, do you think God will do it again?"

Not to leave Audrey out - Her vocabulary is increasing by the day - she cracks us up! Not surprisingly her favorite words revolve around food: eat, more, cracker, apple, drink...

A Boy & A Dog

We spent one of our first spring-like days visiting Nana & G'pa Neil.

Ian loves, loves, loves animals - especially dogs - especially Brownie.

Not surprisingly, he begs to have his own dog & still remembers Oliver (almost daily). Yep, he's our animal-loving kiddo.

I guess you can't expect kids to pose when there are 2 dogs to look at ;)

Cabin Fever Remedy: Kids' Museum

Highlighting one of Audrey's favorite activities: climbing, climbing, climbing!!!