Vacation!

We took 2 weeks to visit all the grandparents, plus took a side trip with some of Alan's family. It was really good to be away and spend some time together having fun. Check out what we saw:

This is the refurbished church
Alan's grandparents were married in!
It is now a library.

This was so pretty!

Matthew trying on Alan's old cowboy hat!

Helen in the bluebonnets .

Visiting an old house in Fayetteville

Don't you love when great pictures take themselves?? I went to snap this pic of Helen and caught the boys in the background. Love, love, love it.

Loves the beach...

...not so much.

At mom's house...she is a lovely person
who grows lovely things...

A-dorable!

Look who's sitting up

Valentine Mailbox for School
(We got Star Wars stickers - nothing "girly")

Maybe I need something pink to wear....

Yummy Applesauce

Matthew calls this my "rock star" hair!

This is a video of Helen watching Matthew. She is absolutely crazy about him and wants to be wherever he is!

Sign language failures

We decided to try baby sign language with Helen. It wasn't necessary with Matthew - he was very predictable and talked very early. But Helen (and the rest of us) were becoming frustrated trying to figure out what she needed. Sign language seemed just the thing. She had begun to screech to be picked up and, since screeching at people is not good manners, we opted to teach her "up please" when she wanted to be held. It worked beautifully. She opened and closed her pudgy hand and we immediately obliged. We scooped her up and told her what a smart, smart girl she was. Well, once that smart, smart girl realized how quickly she could train us, she began to sign "up please" all the time. All the time. You had to avoid eye contact to get across the room. Then, since that worked so well for her, she began to use the sign for everything else she wanted. "Up please" also means I'm hungry, I'm bored, I want my brother's legos,etc..... So, we're basically right back where we started. Except her daddy fears she might develop carpal tunnel from all the wrist action. But since it's at least adorable, here it is on tape!

Mothering

Matthew has officially entered boyhood. I saw it coming, him leaving his babyhood behind, but I'm not sure when it finally happened. I just know it has. It seems unfair that mothers spend so much time training their children in the very thing that will break their mommy heart...growing up.

Of course, it's what we want, but there is a constant pull on my heart; a tug of war between holding on and letting go. This is a letting go. So on to the next adventure, my little Pirate. I'm right behind you.

Snow day!

Does the phrase you'll shoot your eye out come to mind??

Making ice-cream from snow

Brrr!

One last snowball before it's all gone....

Who's having the most fun??

6 months old!

Our roly-poly princess is 6 months old. Here are few facts about our Helen:

*She weighs 18+ lbs and is just over 26 inches long

*She is slightly lax in her gross motor skills, but fine motor skills are superb. She can wrestle her bow from her hair and eat it in seconds.

*We are not worried about her gross motor skills, but it has been suggested we should actually put her down more often. And, perhaps, we could let her work to get things instead of handing them to her when she coos/squawks/ jabbers. Obviously, these people know nothing about children. I think her ability to get what she wants without much effort is just a sign of her remarkable intelligence and strong emerging verbal skills. Ahem.

*She thinks her brother is amazing, especially when he bust out his Michael Jackson moves. He can make her smile and she fusses for him when he walks away.

*She loves her daddy's face. She reaches for it and rubs her hands over his beard while looking in his eyes. PRECIOUS!

*She loves her toys, especially ones that crinkle. She loves to hold and chew on tags!

*She can be a little temperamental, but is exceptionally sweet and happy.

In the words of our pediatrician (who we love), "she's just perfect". We love you, Helen!

Tacky Shoes

Before I had kids, there were things I said I would never do. One of those was buy my kids those tacky, light-up tennis shoes. They look cheap (even though they're not) and, frankly, they're annoying. Second only to the shoes that squeak. Besides, they make cute, trendy shoes that look like something mom or dad would wear. But then Matthew was born.

The first time he said "Mommy, wook. Dey wight up", I crumbled. Besides, everyone would know I didn't pick them out. I was so glad I did. All the way to the car he hopped.

"Wook mom, wook"

And I did. Recently, we went to replace the tennis shoes and he found these awful Buzz Lightyear shoes complete with light-up missiles on the side. I smiled as he tried them on. They were on sale, so I decided to get something similar in the next size up. When I couldn't find them, I asked the saleslady for help. Turns out, they don't make light-up shoes in bigger sizes. WHAT?! Next, she'll be trying to convince me that new shoes don't make you run faster. Always big for his size, he has officially reached the limit of little boy shoes. Next time, he'll have shoes like daddy wears. How boring. These are his last pair of tacky, light-up shoes. I watched him hop to the car -

"Look, mom. Are you ready? Did you see?"

Where did the time go? I am so glad I bought those first pair of shoes. So glad for every pair since then. I glanced at the little girl shoes. There were a pair with glitter laces and purple splatter paint. Absolutely awful. Won't match a thing. But, when the time comes, if Helen thinks they're 'pwetty", we'll get them. We might get two. And I won't think twice about it.