My Baby in Pigtails

Out of the blue, Natalie let me put in some pigtails. I have a soft spot for this little girl hairstyle going back to when my sweet niece Rachel was a wee one. Ian was under the weather and laying on his bed....Natalie and I were hanging out in the floor in his room just to stay close. I asked her if I could play with her hair and she said YES. She was ok with that for a while so I asked her if I could put in pigtails and she said yes again! Because I am a psycho, I had bought the tiny hair ties weeks ago just waiting for this moment. Ta-da!!! Ian was telling her how pretty she looked and she enjoyed the attention. She wore them the rest of the day. Sigh....

Moving Up

Ian took another belt test last weekend....this time to graduate to a blue belt at his Tae Kwon Do studio. He has done a good job this year and is proud to be a part of it. Doing anything like this for a whole year when you are 4 to 5 years old is a big deal. We will probably take the summer off and wait until he gets a little older to pick it up again and pursue that ultimate goal - black belt. Here are some action shots from the morning of the test. Go Ian!

The Wrong Stroller

So I've been catching Natalie settling into her baby doll stroller. I come into her room where she is quietly playing and there she is all squished into a stroller clearly not meant to bear her weight or size. She'll say, 'Mom, I in baby strower. Push me!'. Now if it were her actual stroller and we were on an outing, she probably wouldn't stay in it. Kids are just goofy. I talked to her about how she is too big to do that and how she needs to get out and put the baby or stuffed animals in....but not before I got plenty of pictures!

By the way - notice poor baby doll got stashed in the under carriage :o)

This Year At The Beach

We made our annual trip to the beaches of Destin FL again this April. It was cousin and Daddy heaven for my kids....meaning that they were enjoying plenty of time with both. There was sand castle building, big hole digging and wading in water that only the kids thought wasn't cold. The week of vacation was topped off with Miss Natalie's 2nd birthday. After a morning of fun in the sun, she had a lunch that mostly consisted of cake and icing. It really seemed like to me that she grew a couple inches and suddenly started speaking in full sentences, in that week alone. We are all very thankful for our big goofy family and time together in the sand!

First Game

Ian had his first T-Ball game today. He is a proud member of the Rays, named after the professional team Tampa Bay Rays. Ian (and everyone) got a chance to hit and run bases and both teams 'won'. His coach is Coach Brad (not Dad) and there are friends on the team from our neighborhood and from his class at school. We are proud of our big guy today! Funny side story - Ian asked if his game was gonna be on ESPN. Good ole Ian.

Thomas' Bed Head

Natalie woke up with a pretty fabulous bed head style today. So much so that I was holding her and couldn't quit giggling...which made her laugh too. It was sweet. Her hair has grown a lot lately and you never know what post naptime look she's gonna have!

Ian didn't escape the curse of the bed head either!!

The Zoo Crew

One of Ian's best buds from school is Karsten. We met up with him and his family for a zoo day today. The weather was nice and we packed a lunch. Natalie enjoyed having some other girls to roam with, sisters Caitlyn and Mauren. We hope to make the zoo a regular outing as summer approaches. Ian was most excited about seeing some reptiles and Natalie was really into giraffes.

The blanket was just big enough for all of us to squeeze on and enjoy our PB&Js. It was a big community grub other than that...sharing goldfish, chips and gummies. Towards the end the older three kids were running around the playground while the two little girls got cozy in their strollers with some snacks. Its a good life!