Katie birth --
you make me feel like dancing
only just begun

Many blog-free weeks inevitably leads to a very long post eventually... those of you who graciously readmy blog, please know I fully expect you to skip these over long & rambling posts. My only reason for bothering with them is for my eventual "baby book" I plan to have printed and bound. So, here goes the update full of notes I have been taking for the last two months:

1. Yesterday, we woke up to hearing Katie cooing and talking, and Abby was hollering from her room, "Hi, Katie. Good morning, sweetheart. I love you. Hi cutie. Suns is up!" Doesn't get much sweeter...

2. Abby is finally into eating real sandwiches. I recently overheard her talking to her sandwich. She said, "ok, roast beef, may I eat you now?"

3. Oh boy, are we into dressing ourselves and changing clothes many, many times a day. I allow it, because I figure she is learning so much about physical movement & her own sense of style... but, it is sooooo irritating to find piles of clothes all over her room... even more irritating is going out in public with her completely mismatcged & frumpy. It is a true challenge of my own sense of security not to make her change out of concern that people will judge me for the unusual sense of style expressed by her outfits. I even let her go to school with one brown patent shoe and one white summer shoe. That was not as difficult as a pink plaid top with red pants... the shoes were obviously toddler-chosen, the top and pants, not as much... I got lots of compliments from teachers & other moms at school for letting her do it.

4. I learned the hard way that I must check before we leave to the house to know whether she has a pull-up or panties on. One time I had helped her get dressed for the day, including a pull-up, but when we were out in public, learned that she had pulled a switch-a-roo on me... putting panties on!

5. One morning, when Abby woke up, she said randonly, "I don't have a clock in my room!" Now she says it randomly all the time.

6. We have been training hard on some subjects around here. Within five to ten minutes after arriving at our house for a visit, you could probably identify all of them. Abby regularly corrects us with "no yelling in the house, Mommy" & "don't go in the street!". She has a radar that detects every single use of the word "no", and she will catch it in any context in conversation, and say "don't say "no" Mommy"

7. When we were entering a gated neighborhood last week, she yelled at the guard, "don't go in the street!"

8. reverse monitor, katie go back to sleep

rejoice in the Lord

in want sunscreen on my hiney

no katie, not your birthday, its jesus' birthday

doing my tummy time

Did you go teetee Mommy? when she heard me in the M&Ms

1. Katie is sooooo sad. I am calming her.

2. Dad, we made you pasta. It's in Katie's room.

3. I am foing out to eat tonight to eat hamburgers at a restaurant with Jeff. Anthony, Murray.

4. This is baby dorothy. Her Mommy is at FT.

5. Mommy, don't go in the street! To stangers, don't go in the street!

6. Don't teetee on the bed, m ommu.

7. Do you need to go poopoo more, Daddy?

8. Don't get squashed!

9. letters on trucks and signs around our car

10. Give God the girly, girly, girly, children of the Lord

11. Talling into the monitor to Katie, telling her to go back to sleep

12. Katie born to "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" & "We Only Just Begun" as we left OR

13. Pick a question

14. Oh, that's my Moses

15. Jeremiah is not kind

16. pick a questio

17. Mimi, I need medicine. (on tea cups)

18. Hi girls! (at panera)

19. Excuse me, guys... (at post office)

20. My head is bumpy (need band-aid)

21. I think about my atittude when i laying down... it is good

22. Scott, I got big girl panties at Target!

23. I saw you hugging me in my sleep.

24. Thank you for offering me juice. I don't need it now.

25. Band-aid all week on head

26. post office - excuse me , guys. hi girls!

27. Give God the girly, girly

28. Daddy: I like your outfit Abby. Abby: You cant' wear it. You're too big"

29. Buggy

30. Shar!

Happy Birthday Aunt Kim!

Cheers to a girl who is always sweet,


always a great friend & sister,



always charming & talented,


always full of life & confidence,

but, to our loss, also always looking for an adventure,

always on the move to see new places,

and, always full of the "granola" stuff that a fine "flower child" is made of...

...which led to such as sad "Good-bye", as you left us behind in Texas to find a rich & full life meant for you in Seattle...

But, we count our blessings that the big bird in the sky brings you back to us several times a year. Happy Birthday to a great woman! We love you!

Thank You Dad!

Dear Dad,
Thank you for serving our country and our family, and thank you for continuing to be a man of integrity and honor who daily sacrifices in many ways for those you love. How blessed we all are to have a Father and a Friend in you who is the kind of man that never runs, but always stands by to help, strengthen and comfort. I love you. ~Shar

Joe gets his wings



Joe gets an assignment to Tokyo

Halloween weekend was such fun this year, celebrating Mimi's 60th Birthday, visiting with Kim, Scott, Mel & Billy (who all came to town), and watching our kids do the same things we did many, many years ago.

Sweet Aunt Joyce was there to hold babies whenever the need arose!

Too cute, huh?


First, we had a photo shoot in the front yard that, as usual, was much too long according to the kiddos...but we just couldn't help ourselves. Look at all this cuteness!

Piper: "Hey, I remember you! You're my friend!"

Piper: "But, whoah, I don't know about you to my left..."

Katie: "No worries, Piper. That's my big sis, Abby. She may look kinda big & scary, but she's pretty nice, most of the time anyway."

Hey, Mom, I'm getting kinda hungry!

Signs are starting to surface that we should bring an end to this photo shoot, but do we listen?

Abby: "I know I look like I am in control & everything, but I'm not so sure I can hold on to em both much longer..."

Abby: "Piper, I know, baby, this is exhausting isn't it? You'll build your endurance. Don't worry. Next year you'll be able to hold out long enough for the candy!"

I forgot what it was like to have a cooperative kid to take pictures with... I will remember to enjoy this while it lasts...

Because, soon, Katie will be making these faces when told to smile...

Finally, we're off! Aunt Kim gave Abby this cutest sassy skirt that was just perfect to wear for trick or treating.

Naptime is so Exhausting!

So it was 4:45 this afternoon, nearly 5pm, and guess who was still napping? Yep, Abby. I had somewhere to be at 5pm, so I opened her door to wake her & this is what I saw...

She did not even flinch when I walked into her room to take photos. She was out. Apparently, she had a very productive naptime, as her bed was completely moved into the center of the room and clothes were out of her dresser on the floor. When I said her name & tapped her leg, here is the startled look I received...

Need to Smile Today?

If you have watched too much Headline News today or are otherwise needing to smile, then take a break & listen to Katie reporting that "it's all good"...

Coffee Dates

Coffee date at 3 months old...


Coffee date at 2 1/2 years old...

So may all young ladies take note that Abby has first dibs on Ry Ry! Just ask the Mommies... we made a deal before they were even born... :-)

Little Dancers

Abby & two of her best friends were blessed with a memorable life experience today. They saw Riverdance at the Majestic Theater with their Mommies. The show was fabulous & so were the little girls! They sat still & watched the two-hour show quietly (for the most part!)... except when Abby hollered out "Hi, Jenna!" when Jenna was walking up the stairs to our seats during a peformance...

sproutonline.com "dotcom"

apricot on / costume

bandaid/ headband

pack n play / playdough bed

Time Out Daddy!

Tonight Jake, Abby & I were sitting on the floor building domino towers & knocking each other's towers down. When Jake tossed a domino at my tower to knock it down instead of knocking it with his hand, Abby suddenly hollered at Jake, "No sir! You know better! You go to time-out RIGHT NOW!" Jake asked Abby what he did to deserve time-out, and she told him that he knows better than to throw dominoes. So, Jake complied & agreed to go to time-out. (We both thought it would be a little educational tool for Abby.) She insisted that time-out had to be in a specific spot she selected on the floor in the kitchen. When he sat down for time-out, she told him, "You no throw dominoes! You sit right here and think about it!" When I asked her how long she required Jake to be in time-out, she said, "4 minutes". Once Jake was sitting in time-out as instructed, she came strutting into the living room, sat down next to me & told me, as if we were part of the adult team together & Dad was the kid, "Dad's in time-out." When she walked back into the kitchen to check on him, she noticed that Jake had his hand on the kitchen towel hanging from a hook on the cabinet in front of him. She walked over, pulled the towel out of his hand & took it down to the farthest part of the ktichen counter & said, "this is NOT play time!" Jake & I lost all ability to stifle laughter at that point... wow! Toward the end of time-out, she said to Jake, "let's pray" & then proceeded to pray something pretty garbled, although we recognized the words "Dear God," "throw dominoes" & "Amen." Let's just say that Abby knows the time-out ropes, as has had her fair share everywhere she goes!