We had an awesome visit to the country
this week (more on that later), but man, the day after is
rough! We got home around 11:30pm last night and were in bed by
12:30am. Both kids slept for most of the way home, but fussed a
bit towards the end. Eve, for some crazy reason, was up at 6am
and raring to go! I was hoping to get to sleep in at least a
little. Lex woke up at 8:15 (super late for him!) and just in
time to go to swimming lessons. I was exhausted and asked them
both several times if they really wanted to go and, of course,
they did! Alan came with us and we ended up having a great
time. He play with Lex in the splash pool during Eve’s lesson
(that girl amazes her swim teachers every week!) and we all had
fun in the current pool after the lesson. We got home and they
watched a show while I took a shower. Then naps (for them) and
grocery shopping (for me). A whole lot of unpacking and
cleaning, dinner, and Alan was out the door for a meeting. I
think the roughest part (besides the fact that I’m super
overtired!) is that Eve is so jazzed up on the constant
attention she got all week that she just wanted more, more,
more! I wanted some “me” time, and I think Lex and Alan were
the same, but Eve was eager for attention and also extremely
tired. Sigh. They are both asleep now (yay!) and I’m aiming for
an early bedtime, so tomorrow should go smoother. :)

Eve has taken a liking to calling me Tessa
instead of mommy. It’s very cute and funny to hear her say it.
I think I unintentionally reinforce the behavior sometimes by
not answering her immediately (like if I’m on the phone or
talking to Lex) when she says “mommy, mommy” but stopping what
I’m doing to laugh when she says “hey Tessa.” She’s a funny
girl.

I bought the kids Near-Shore
Personal Flotation Devices (life vests) the other day so they
don’t die at the lake this summer. Last year Lex went under
once or twice, but Eve stayed near the edge, but this year
they’re both hepped up on swimming lessons and convinced they
know how to swim, so I’m a little worried about losing someone
in the lake! They were pretty excited about the vests and Eve,
ever the fashion maven, decided to wear hers for awhile. In
case of flooding, perhaps? Now we just have to wait and see if
they will actually wear them at the lake this summer!

Here are some pictures that my parents
took, Rosy posted on Facebook, I downloaded from there and
posted here. I love technology!! :) Congrats Joyce!!! Enjoy
your warmer weather.

Try this link to see the
professional pictures: http://www.facebook.com/p.php?i=710545954&k;=SXB32XWXUV6M5D11RJ3ZTU

Some of them are small and some have a
copyright thing on them. I chose not to pay $250 for the
digital copies of the pictures, so you get what you get :) They
are adorable though. IMHO!

We had a very busy Saturday
this weekend. We took the kids to The Picture People for
professional pictures. I was hoping to get there early and have
a nice relaxed session, but of course we were late and the
whole thing was chaotic. Lex was hungry and rushed and in no
need to participate. Eve was a camera glam girl. The
photographer snapped picture after picture of her while we
negotiated with Lex. We ended up with one nice picture of them
together, a few pictures of him alone, and tons of her :) I’ll
post them all somewhere and put a link here. Alan’s family met
us at the studio (and bought us pictures, thanks!!!) and then
we all went to Chuck E. Cheese for lunch/playtime. Lex was much
happier there, although it took him awhile to get used to the
noise and crowds. He spent the first half of the time in the
pipes on the ceiling, crawling around and just watching the
crowds below, but after awhile he came down and played with the
games and had some lunch. After C.E.C. we all drove down to
Grammy Lynn and Grampy Don’s house for a quick rest (I called
Joyce while Eve napped in the car) and then we went out to
dinner to celebrate their 41st anniversary!! That’s a lot of
years!! :) After a delicious dinner we headed home. It was a
fun, but very long, day.

This afternoon
our neighbor stopped by and asked if we wanted to go bowling.
Lex was talking about bowling a few days ago and seemed
excited, so I thought he’d love to go. Instead he said, “No
thank you.” I suggested Eve and I go and he stays home with
Alan, but he said, “Mom, we all need to stay home today. All
four of us at home.” I think he needed a day to recover!
Honestly, I think we all needed a day to recover :) I’ll get a
link to those professional pictures asap.

Alan opened this curtains this morning and
saw a woodpecker happily pecking at a tree stump in the
backyard. He called us in to see and we all watched for a long
time! After awhile it zipped over to another spot in the yard
and kept going. Squirrels came by, other birds came by, and the
woodpecker just kept at it. We were amused. The kids also liked
getting to stand on the window sill :)

We found the first signs of
spring today. After raking up big piles of leaves we found a
few little purple flowers poking through. Crocus, right? I
should know this, but always doubt myself.

In an area of no doubt… Eve is a thriving baby girl! We
took her in for her 2 year check-up today and the doctors (we
saw our regular pedi and a med student) we both impressed with
her physical and verbal abilities, and even more impressed with
her cooperative nature during the exam! :) She was a champ! She
even took the lead test finger prick without even a grimace.
She weighs 28lbs and is 35″, both about 70th percentile on the
grow charts. She’s an active, happy, thriving little person.
We’re blessed to have her!