Just for Fun!

We've had lots of people ask us who Matthew resembles, and it prompted me to go back and look at baby photos of Hannah and Peter. My conclusion . . .

it depends on which photo you're looking at. :o)

Each of them has some pretty strong distinguishing characteristics, but they're all definitely siblings. However, looking back at photos inspired the idea of a little contest--how many baby photos can you identify?

The prize . . . a $25 Restaurant.com Gift Certificate!

Nitty Gritty:

• Enter a comment with your guess for each photo. You'll get one entry just for leaving a comment and an extra one for each correctly identified photo.
• I'll post the answers and randomly select a winner Friday evening.
• For what it's worth, the photos are arbitrarily ordered based on the day of the month the photo was originally taken and there's three of each child . . .
• If you're feeling confused, it's okay--even we have to stop and really think on some of these! (They were not chosen based on the prevelance of distinguishing features!) :o)

Have fun!! :o)
And thanks for guessing! :o)

:::
A

:::
B

:::
C

:::

D

:::

E

:::

F

:::

G

:::

H

:::

I

Our Furry Friend

We definitely enjoyed having Toby visit last weekend! :o)

Just as we had suspected, Peter quickly got over his nervousness and had a blast playing with his new friend.

His only disappointment was that Toby didn't get nearly as excited about playing fetch with him as with Daddy.

Balls that only travel about ten feet don't breed much enthusiasm . . . :o)

It must be documented that Hannah tore the knee in her first pair of pants in her efforts to retrieve a ball Toby was ignoring. (She does not like balls that run away.)

But she still enjoyed spending time with Toby and cried when he went home . . .

Charting His Own Course

Happy Two Months, Matthew! :o)

Our "little" Monkey is defintely charting his own course! :o) At his two-month checkup today his weight of 15 lbs. 4 oz. put him at the 96th percentile and his length of 26.5 inches puts him at the 99.8th percentile for length. Ummm, I think he's going to be tall like his Daddy . . . what do you think?? He's almost exactly where Peter was at at four months . . . and closer to six months for Hannah. No wonder I have to keep reminding myself that he's only two months old . . .

He's actually off the curve of the growth chart!

Here's a few snap shots from the last couple weeks, in no particular order . . .

I'm so glad we didn't sell the mobile! I thought about it . . .

Hmm, how much longer before his heels will be hanging off the end?


He enjoys bath time . . . :o)

And attention of most any sort!

It's very easy to coax a smile, but here's his pretty typical expression when he's "just chillin'."

Somehow I suspect we'll someday be shopping in "Big & Tall" department for this young man! We love you, Monkey!

Happy Father's Day (and more!)

Happy Father's Day!
(and Happy Grandpa's Day!)

We love you!

It's been busy around here . . . but that's pretty normal. :o} Going back to work has definitely increased the potential for feeling overwhelmed, but the Lord gives grace day by day. Besides that, what's been going on?

Well, last weekend, with temps nearing (or surpassing!) 100 degrees, Chris and the kids did some yard work while Mommy held down the fort with Matthew and "lunch train."



With the heat, the kids have spent most afternoons inside with books and crafts and such . . .

I thought Hannah's picture of our family was pretty cool! :o) You can tell she already has high hopes for being at least as tall as Mommy . . . from left to right, the letters designate Mommy, Matthew, Daddy, Hannah, and Peter. It's funny . . . I remember as a child drawing my skies just that way--as a blue bit at the top of my picture.

Peter's continuing to do very well with potty training. Not perfect, but doing quite well. As long as we remember to take him every hour or so, he does great, but he's still not going on his own initiative. It'll come.

Matthew's growing like a weed and doing wonderfully! Sweet, content, and lots of smiles! Couldn't ask for more! (And he really likes his "new" mobile we rediscovered in our yard sale efforts . . . )

Just about finished with the last of our "reorg" projects--Chris and the kids spent one evening cataloging our music cds so that we could replace the hard cases with paper ones and shrink the space requirement for storage.

Mommy's glad for the perk-me-up of a new haircut! :o) (This was a self-protrait in the bathroom mirror . . .one of the last of 31 tries!)

And then we've enjoyed caring for friends' dog Toby this weekend . . . Other than that, our "major accomplishments" have involved

• getting everyone dressed (and redressed)
• filling (and refilling) empty tummies
• "cleaning" (and recleaning) major surface areas - very loose definition!
• washing, drying, folding, and putting away many loads of laundry
• crashing into bed exhausted each night

We tend to be very project oriented--we like to cross things off to-do lists. (As if this is any great revelation for those who know us . . . ) The Lord is teaching us a good bit right now about enjoying the blessings He's given us in the form of three precious children and being content to get "just the basics" done (or not done . . . ) and not to let our attitude be soured by the number of things outstanding on other lists. We're learning, but some days we're better learners than others . . . thanks for praying for us! :o)

Fun at the Farm

Have you ever played with baby goats? If not, you should definitely look for an opportunity to do so! :o) Our friends' goats gave birth a few weeks ago, and they are super cute! We had a fun visit last week!

One special thing about this visit was to see how much Hannah has matured in her response to four-footed friends. Watching Peter was a vivid reminder of how dramatic such visits could be with Hannah a few years ago. Here Hannah was trying to encourage Peter to pet the goats. Not happening.

He has this "love-hate" relationship with animals right now--he loves them--loves to read about them, loves to see them, . . . but he gets very timid when he has the opportunity to pet them. (He's still doing better than Hannah was at his age--she would have been in our arms screaming in terror in a similar situation . . . )

Things are much better when someone has the furry friend held captive in a safe position. :o)

He finally decided that swings were a lot more fun--and was doing a great job of pumping all by himself!

And on the other hand, here's Hannah-bug who took to the goats like a duck to water. :o) What a blessing! Actually, it's our friends who are the blessing--they've watched the kids for us multiple times over the years, and their small farm has definitely helped Hannah become comfortable with animals of all sorts. :o)

My new favorite picture of our little lady . . .

As always, both kids enjoyed feeding the chickens . . .

Peter was definitely more comfortable interacting with animals tucked safely behind a fence. :o)

And here's the little guy who slept for nearly our entire visit and thus managed to escape getting his first visit to the farm documented on film. Ah well. :o) Another time . . .