Catching up!

So, what have we been up to this month? Lots of playing with our girls and some work and school and sleep thrown in for good measure. Jeff and a friend put on a race in frigid weather (which turned out great!). We've discovered that Charlotte is likely allergic to milk - yikes! For a girl who loves (or loved :-( ) her milk and cheese and yogurt, that is bad news folks! But, hopefully it will be good news for her poor tummy and her disposition. Caroline asked Jeff to take her training wheels off her bike last weekend and here are the results!

She did awesome. Jeff just ran next to her the first time, and when he let go, she kept going! She didn't fall until about try 7 or 8 and she was really proud of herself. It's a skill we have to keep working on, but we were really proud of how brave and agile she was.

On the subject of kids, we also found out this month that you'll likely be seeing another little face on the blog come early September! I'm a little over 9 weeks along, feeling so-so, but we're looking forward to welcoming another baby into our family. As always, we appreciate your prayers for this new little life!

These are a few of your favorite things: Caroline

Our first-born Caroline has a personality like no one else I know. As of January 2010, here are a few of your favorite things, sweet Caroline and some of my favorite things about you:
You love to pretend. Baby dolls, Barbies, Disney Princesses, Little People, Nativity sets, trucks and cars; they all quickly become part of your elaborate imaginary world.

You love apples and blueberries. Cranberry juice and popsicles. Dessert of just about any kind. Red beans and rice, hamburgers, fish, cous cous, broccoli. Crackers and bread. You can eat an entire bag of microwave popcorn on your own.

You love movies, especially Disney movies involving princesses. Or superheroes. You loves to play outside and you are full of joy when we spend an afternoon or evening at the park. You can entertain yourself in your room with your dolls or legos for what seems like hours.
You love music and particularly enjoy singing. You knows the words to more songs than I do. You have a memory like a steel trap and often remind us of things we've done long ago or places we've been that seem impossible for you to remember.
You love your gymnastics class and your dance classes; you look so forward to the days we go to dance or gym each week.You just taught yourself how to maneuver the monkey bars like a pro.

You were beside yourself when we went to see the Nutcracker this year. You loved the dancing and followed the story so much better than I ever would have expected.

You love stories and look forward to our time reading together each night. You love your Bible and love Jesus more than just about anyone else I know. You talk about him like he is your closest friend. You ask questions about God and the way the world works that are often really difficult for us to answer.
You have a tender heart that is easily bruised and you have a keen sense for when someone else's feelings are being hurt.

You have a contagious smile and laugh and a wonderful sense of humor. One look at your smiling face can bring me out of a bad mood every time.
You love your sister with all of your heart.
You love to help with everything and you make just about anything more enjoyable.

These few paragraphs sum up a small glimpseof the girl who made me a mother. There are so many more things that make her who she is and that make her a joy to be around.

I love you Caroline!

December with our girls

Caroline, Jeff, and I went to see the Nutcracker in December and it was wonderful. Caroline was totally entranced by the performance and followed the story really well. For those of you who haven't seen it, it is purely a ballet, no talking or singing at all, so I was hoping it would hold her attention. It certainly did that and more. She pretended to be Clara for days after the performance. There was a channel that was showing versions of the Nutcracker from around the world during the weeks leading up to Christmas and we caught the very beginning of the one performed by the Bolshoi Ballet Company in Russia. Caroline loved watching that and she and I sat together for two hours enjoying their version. Jeff said it was too boring on TV. So, here are a couple of pictures of our girl with her new haircut and her Christmas dress right before we left for the Nutcracker.





Charlotte had her first ride as a passenger in Caroline's Jeep, and she was happy as could be riding around the yard and down the sidewalk in the pink Barbie Jeep.



And just because she is growing so much and I love this little dress, here's a picture of Charlotte before church two Sundays ago.