Bathtime

For some reason, I think my kids look even cuter without any clothes on. Here they are in the bath in all their naked glory. Brian was the excellent photographer who took these relatively modest shots.



I love both their faces in this one:


Joshua brushing his (2) teeth:

Vroom vroom!

I don't know where he learned this, but Joshua likes to drive cars (and other objects) around the kitchen floor. And I think I've heard him trying to make a car sound a couple of times. He's definitely a boy.

Easter Egg Hunt

We hid some candy-filled eggs for Kara to find. She was so much faster this year than last! She did a good job beating Joshua to the ones that he could reach.

Easter Sunday

Brian's parents bought Kara a new Easter dress this year. Joshua didn't get anything new, but he doesn't need it yet. Here are a few shots of them before we went to church (which now starts at 1:30!! grrrr).

Chick-fil-A

The day before Easter we had lunch at Chick-fil-A, and there was a setup outside to take pictures with a real bunny. There were also cute little colored chicks in a bucket to pet, and you could say hi to the cow mascot. The kids loved it!

Camera Upgrade

This digital camera we've been using for years (Brian owned it before we even got married) was pretty nice when it first came out in 2001. Nowadays it's a brick.


We used some of our tax refund this year to finally purchase a smaller, lighter, higher-functioning one. Oooooo, shiny!

Sneaky Boy

We need to remember to keep the utility room door closed because if we ever leave it open, Joshua sneaks in there to...


eat Kara's shoes.


He's always so happy in there, though!

Winter is Over

Now that it's warming up, the grass--along with weeds--is growing again. Time to start yard work! Kara likes to help Daddy weed by pulling the leaves off and leaving the stems and roots behind. She's a great helper!

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday. She was a wonderful mother to all of us as we were growing up. She is a nice mother to her 6 children and a sweet grandmother to her 6 grandchildren. Have a good one, Mom! We love you!

Who Needs a Walker...

when a little stool works just fine?

Signing

I took 4 semesters of ASL when I was in high school, and I was pretty fluent then (unfortunately, I'm out of practice, so now I'm rusty), so before I was even married I was planning on teaching it to to my babies. Well, for some reason (laziness), I didn't teach Kara any signs until she was 12 months old, but she immediately picked it up and began signing back. It made communication wonderful. I started signing to Joshua a little earlier. He's not yet 9 months old, and today he signed back for the first time!
It was a little warm today, so I had turned the ceiling fan on in the living room, and he kept looking up at it. I told him, "fan" and did the sign for "ceiling fan" (index finger pointed upwards and making circles). Later I asked him, "Where's the fan?" while signing it, and he would look at it, so I knew he understood. The next time I asked him a little later, he looked at the fan and tried doing the sign, too! It looks kinda like he's just pointing at it, but he's not; he's signing "ceiling fan." :)


(Don't look at his face in this next one; just look at that cute little finger!)

Home Repairs

Our one-year home warranty period ends this month, so this week we've been having workers over to do some repairs (at no charge, of course). They did some paint touch-ups and adjusted sliding closet doors to make them glide smoothly, among other things. What makes me most happy is that the floor squeak is gone! We had an annoyingly noisy squeak in the middle of our bedroom doorway upstairs. I mean, I would frequently jump over that area so that I wouldn't step on it and make noise; it was bad. It's gone now, and it's soooo nice. We're still getting used to it, though, wincing as we walk into the bedroom, expecting to hear the dreaded squeeeeeeak! After a year of torture, the problem has been repaired. :) So I just wanted to share my happy (if not pathetic) good news.

Funny Kids

Kara and Joshua have done/said a few funny things in the past couple days that I wanted to share.

Kara looked out the window and said: "Mama, a dog!"
Me: "Do you see a dog outside?"
Kara: "Think it's a cat... or a dog... or a reindeer!"

Joshua likes to sneak away and climb up the stairs (the baby gate is coming in the mail), but he never goes up too far before I'm there. He'll crawl up a few steps then peek through the banister and wait for me to notice and run over there.

Kara said the other day: "Mama, you are SUCH a good girl!"
Me (laughing): "Why?"
Kara: "Because you are funny!"

Sometimes Joshua squints his eyes and makes this big toothy (well, mostly gummy) grin; it's hilarious! And, of course, since we laugh, he does it again, then we laugh again; it's a vicious cycle.




Kara also has an, um, interesting smile sometimes. We'll tell her to smile for the camera, and she'll do this totally FAKE sideways smile. Frustrating as it is, trying to get a cute picture of her, I still get a kick out of it.

Happy Birthday, Papa!

Brian's dad Chip Vance is celebrating his birthday today. Papa loves to spoil his 3 grandchildren, and we loved having him come for a visit last month. He's very social, funny, and kind. We love you, Papa!

Happy Birthday, Ben!

Our nephew Benjamin is seven years old today. He's a smart and thoughtful boy who has managed to grow as tall as his older brother. Hope your day is great, Benji!