First haircut

Just shy of her 5th birthday, Annie got her very first haircut.

Before


Very intent on watching the process in the mirror


After


She loves it. She dances around singing, "I love short hair!" (not that it's that short...)

Spring!

Surprise! A bunch of blog posts from me and spring is coming to New England!

I took these pictures yesterday. After today, there's hardly any snow left. It's especially nice to be able to get Lauren out. The snow was so deep for much of the winter, it was hard to find something for her to do outside. We had a great time hiking on the trails behind our house today. We love the winter, but we are welcoming the coming of spring.

Annie is turning 5!

During our time with both families last weekend, Annie received some very special birthday gifts. She has been asking for an American Girl doll for a while and was thrilled to receive one as a gift from Grandma and Grandpa.



Aunt Alli gave Annie the dress she will wear as flower girl for the wedding.


Aunt Becky made a beautiful flower cake for Annie.


Grammy and Grandpa made bunk beds for the girls' dolls. Annie is also wearing a nightgown made by Grammy (the American Girl doll has a matching nightgown).


In case you are wondering about the veil Annie is wearing in every picture.... Grandma gave it to Annie. It was the veil she wore for her First Communion. Annie wore it all weekend.

My sister is getting married!

The celebrations begin! My mom's two sisters, my sister-in-law, and I hosted a bridal shower in Cincinnati for Alli last weekend. Great fun and a great time with family.



Mom and Alli with an afghan made by our grandmother.


Just for fun, Mom brought the veil and headpiece from her wedding. Annie thoroughly enjoyed playing "Bride" with the other little girls.


Wait til you see us in two months in our bridesmaid dresses!

Medals

The kids have an opportunity to participate in a sort of scavenger hunt as part of the their cross country skiing program. They have a card on which they collect punches that are found on various places along the trails they are skiing. We missed some days of skiing due to sickness and Christmas travel, so Annie wasn't going to get a medal. On the last day of the program, Jack grabbed her from her group and they set off on a huge quest to nab the three more punches she would need to qualify for a bronze medal. They were gone for a very long time; we were the last people left in the lodge that night. But, they did it! Annie was so excited to earn a medal and so happy with her daddy for helping her do it.



Jakin and Corban both earned gold medals.


It was Jakin's idea to pose for one picture with all of the medals each kid has earned in the past. He is already talking about the special medal he would earn next year for earning five gold medals. I'm not sure where that competitive gene came from....

"Massachusetts Day"

As a fun school thing, I hosted "Massachusetts Day" for a group of kids a few weeks ago. For one of the activities, the kids worked in small groups to create a map of the state on our yet unfinished floors. Corban was working in a group, but he sort of took over and made the most meticulous painters' tape map I could ever imagine.

two

Ok, so it's two months after Lauren's second birthday. I'm catching up, so I'll start there. At two, Lauren can say anything she wants to say. Communication is so fun at this stage. For example, she calls syrup "beebeeyaba". I know exactly what she's talking about and it's so cute that I never correct her. She loves to go "byebye" - a couple days at home starts to drive her nuts. She doesn't eat fruits, vegetables, or anything else she's never tried before. Potty training has begun, but no serious progress yet. Biased we are, but she's impossibly cute. As Jack says, "She's living a dangerous life!"

If you have an older sister, you have a built-in dress up buddy.


Waking up from a nap with Daddy


We got Lauren a swing for her birthday. Jack hung it up in the basement for the winter. Lauren loved it and kept saying, "Ike it swing!" (which translates as "I like the swing!").


Posing with birthday gifts