Daddy's Day, School girl, and Fourth of July, Oh my!

Geesh, time is going way too fast! We've been having a great summer and June was filled with all kinds of good times. Father's day brought all kinds of adventure including a trip to the zoo, a hike at Great Falls, and Art-o-matic with dancers from Brazil.

We've also gotten playtime with Brook, Hunter, and Garrett, visits with the grandparents, and Arabella even had a school performance where she dazzled perhaps more with her smile than her ability to do all the dance moves at the same time as her classmates.

The Fourth of July was a great trip to Salisbury to see the grandparents, hit the beach, indulge at the zoo, go on a boat ride, and ride in a horse carriage. What fun! Now that summer is officially here, we'll need to make it to the pool as often as possible.

Thalia is officially able to sit up on her own now and is generally happy and ready with a giggle. Arabella is trying hard to be more reliable about making it to the potty and we hope that the magic happens soon. She's a pretty happy little kid too and is known for singing loudly to drown out any upset babies or the conversation her parents might be trying to have.

As for the rest of us -- Christian starts grad school in August and Calista is still happy with her job. What more could we ask for? Ok, there's always a list, but it's pretty short.

Enjoy all the pics!

Happy Birthday Daddy!

June is Daddy's month! We kicked things off with celebrations for his 40th birthday (Can you believe it???), complete with birthday cake for breakfast and a casual brunch for 40+ people on Saturday. It was a fantastic time. I especially loved the posters Christian's mom made of dozens of pictures of him from birth through today. There were the cute baby years, the awkward years, the punk years, the Japan years, and many many more.

Enjoy the many pics from the celebrations as well as usual fixation on pics of the girls. They really are as adorable as they look, most of the time.

May is for Mommy

The month is rolling along just the way any mother would love -- celebrating mothers day with my mom, my mother-in-law, and my kiddos. The dads all made it extra special too! We loved the visits and special treats. A week later, the party rolls on! Girls night and my birthday all in one weekend. There is truly no better gift than watching Thalia roll over for the first time and then the absolute delight she experienced in discovering her toes. To top it off, Arabella and I went to Cake Love to pick up a cake and on the way home she was softly singing in the backseat, "Happy birthday mommy, happy birthday mommy,..." while beaming from ear to ear. Melt my heart.

The whole weekend was one adventure into the next with the Popetz family of 4 plus pup staying with us, Lindy's birthday bash at Mei Wah, and the Potomac Hunt steeple chase (live horse races, standing at the rail in the lush spring grass).

It's been a fun month and rolling onward for more. Perhaps soon we'll have our motorcycles back up and running for even more adventure! Enjoy the pix!

April flowers

April is here and the flowers are moving from fragile to blooming. Another way of saying the girls are beginning to slowly settle into the new normal around here. Thalia is beginning to smile more, eat more, and grow faster. Arabella is steadily becoming used to the balancing act of her needs and Thalia's needs. She's a fantastic big sister and always ready with a song, a toy, or a full facial hug. Let's hope the pot of sister love is bottomless!

As for life in general, we're continuing to enjoy lots of time with family and friends. Calista is back to work and Christian just got accepted to grad school -- hold on, the next few years will be a wild ride! Enjoy the pix.

Two small Peeps for Easter

We had a great Easter with an outing to the park with the Fredericksen grandparents and a great big egg hunt with the Britner grandparents. What fun!! So many gifts for the girls in those Easter baskets, we really are blessed. Most of all, we love the adventures we have with our families. Enjoy the pix!