Miriam's 1st Birthday Video

Our sweet girl turned one!  Here's a look back over her first year:

https://vimeo.com/150673032

And here's a look at Elias's first year:

https://vimeo.com/user29089253/elias1

And Elias's second year:

https://vimeo.com/user29089253/elias2

Elias is TWO!

Happy Birthday, Big Boy!

Playing at the new sand table Daddy built him.

 

Below is a link to a video looking back over the last year.

 

Elias's Birthday Video

 

And if you're feeling really sentimental, here's his video from his first birthday.

 

Elias's Birthday Video - Year 1

 

Swimming Lessons

Elias started his second year of swimming lessons yesterday. He's doing great!

 



May 31st

May 31, 2014

Last year, we found out we were having another baby.

 

May 31, 2015

This year, we held the sweetest baby, and she is just what we needed.

 

Memorial Day Parade

Today, Elias's friend Allison invited him to be a part of her neighborhood Memorial Day parade.  Since we live in a small town, we knew most of the other families that participated in the festivities. The bigger kids rode their bikes but Allison and Elias rode in a wagon that they decorated.  Afterwards, we had a cookout with Allison's family. Events like this are one of the reasons we have come to love living in a small town.

Decorating their wagon with crepe paper and balloons

Ready for the parade to start

All of the kids lined up for the parade

Elias got his first sucker.  He liked it :)

 Good friends and post-parade suckers

Elias loves playing with his friend Allison.

We went home for naps and this evening our neighbor, Barb treated us to KFC.  We enjoyed it outside on her patio.  After dinner, we brought our full bellies to a cookout with friends where we socialized until bedtime.  It was a wonderful day of rest and friendship.

Playing in the Rain

I love these photos I took of Big Boy today.  His word revolves around construction vehicles right now.  He's always digging with his toy trucks, asking to go to campus to see the real construction vehicles, or reading his books about diggers and bulldozers over and over and over again.  The librarians know he checks out all the truck books and his friends' moms know he will always have his collection of construction vehicles nearby.

It was raining today so he and I put on old clothes and played out in the rain while Daddy and Mir-Bear stayed dry inside.  I showed him how water pours down from the gutters and it's a good place to fill his bucket and we stomped in the puddles and dug a lot of dirt. 

And then, of course, I took pictures.

Warmer Weather

Two weeks ago, on a Sunday afternoon, it hit 40 degrees outside so we headed out on our first walk as a family of four.

 

Big Boy decided to taste the snow all on his own.  His conclusion was, "Mmmm! Snow! Snack!"

He loves cars, trucks, and construction vehicles, but lately this front end loader has been his favorite toy.  He specifically asks us to find this one for him by saying, "Eeng! Eeng! Eeng!" which is one of the construction vehicle noises from one of his favorite books.

(By the way, please let me know if you see this exact front end loader in a store!  Momma and Daddy lost it last week and he still asks for it a couple of times a day).

After pushing his truck for a while, he decided to be the truck!

And this little lady enjoyed her walk outside with the family.