Monday, August 17, 2015

Look Who's T.W.O.!

 Rowe Catherine turns two today! Two years ago, on a Saturday morning, we welcomed this big bundle of joy!


8.17.13   10 lbs.   10:28 a.m.

Here is her birth story. She made her presence known from the moment we met her, and has continued to sparkle all her days. She loves her family, and especially playing with her brother. Her favorite toys are little versions of the things we use everyday (house toys), play dough, bubbles, and anything her brother plays with. She already likes all things girly: painted toenails, shoes, purses, jewelry, a bow in her hair.  Her favorite songs are: The Wheels On the Bus, Five Little Monkeys, and Jesus Loves Me. Her favorite book is The Very Hungry Caterpillar and loves to talk about the moon and the egg.  She talks all the time, and is happy a lot of the time. Her greatest frustration at the moment (and mine) is wanting to do everything "with myself". "I open the door with myself", she says. "I put my shoes on with myself", she says. The only problem is she can't do them all completely "with" herself, and no amount of help is acceptable most days. All these personality traits will serve her well in life, and so far increase my time in prayer. When she does get in trouble, especially with her daddy, she bats her eyelashes and in the sweetest little voice says, "Um daddy, um daddy, um I love you!" Yeah, it's hard to do much with that! 

To have started out so big, Rowe has grown right on track for her age. She's around 30 lbs., size 2t clothes and size 8 shoes. She will eat almost anything, but loves fruit the most (especially grapes). She decided a few months ago that she would start potty training. One day she said she wanted to go potty... and did. I thought I'd hit the jackpot! She has continued to show interest, but hasn't become too consistent yet. There's plenty of time. We took her paci away a couple of weeks ago, after loosing 4 in one day. Two of those were to the puppy.  She would drop them in front of her, say "look Emmie", then scream when Emmie took it and chewed it. "Such a fun game", said only the puppy. The lose of her beloved "pass" has really only been a problem when it's time to sleep. She now screams for 10-15 minutes while writhing around before each nap or bedtime, then passes out and usually sleeps well. I'm sure this phase will pass quickly, and for now I just try to enjoy each twist and turn in her road. In a few weeks she will start preschool one day a week and a bible study with me once a week. I know she is going to mature so much as she branches out from us. 

Rowe makes our days so full of fun and laughter. She has great things ahead of her, and we are so excited to watch her learn and grow! 

For her birthday, we had a little playhouse party this weekend with a few of her friends. The plan was to decorate her playhouse for a birthday party, and then have cake and ice cream in the barn. It rained! So plan B worked just fine. They played in the playroom and then ran to the barn for the food. It did stop raining as everyone was ready to leave, so some of the children played outside for a little while. Rowe loved it all, and that was most important. Today, she and I are having fun playing with her new toys on Brennan's first full day of kindergarten. 

The Party

Play-doh to the rescue






She loved her presents so much, she didn't want to leave them to eat cake.


The decorations were all playhouse toys belonging to Rowe or her family. 
An easy menu: little cupcakes, ice cream, blueberries, and chips


Party favors: pick a play-doh and a play-doh mat (from here: picklebums)


She looked like she might cry while we sang Happy Birthday, but she was excited to eat. 



The big kids styling on their own. 

Rowe's 2nd Year
























Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Kindergarten Here He Comes

Six years ago I stood in my 5th grade classroom doorway, having left the sweetest 7 month old baby boy for one of the first times that morning, fighting the tears as I watched precious kindergarteners march past on their way to the first day of their school careers. I could only imagine, what felt like an eternity away, when Brennan would walk down a hall in a little line to start his first day of school. Those kindergarteners started fifth grade this year, and the time between then and now has passed all too quickly for my heart.

Today he did it! He walked down a school hall and right into a wonderful kindergarten classroom. He was ready! We were not. We have had fun getting ready for today: back pack, lunch bag, supplies, new clothes (that are still in the closet because he insisted on his favorite shirt for the big day), special outings, pictures. We have talked over and over about getting up each morning ready to do our best, and always being who we are even when others may act differently. We've gone to meet his teacher, who already seems like the perfect fit for this little guy. Now we get to adjust to a new normal: early wake up and early bedtime, less time together and for play, more exciting learning, and a whole new adventure for a little boy growing all too fast.


Meet The Teacher Day



We had to ask him to wait for us. He knew where to go, and he was ready!



As we walked in, a few people asked to take pictures. He obliged, but was really concerned about getting to work. 




A great start to a great year!


Saturday, August 1, 2015

Beach Pictures

Two beach trips means two evenings of beach pictures for me! The first trip my goal was to get pictures of Rowe. I have two large canvases of Brennan on the beach at the same age, so I wanted to capture some of Rowe also. I haven't actually printed them yet (no surprise there :), but I think they will coordinate well.














The second trip we were able to have my mom and the three grandchildren. My photography skills definitely lack when it comes to getting everyone smiling and looking at the camera. I actually love photographs where the people are doing something and a little more natural. I was able to try a little of both, and we came away with a few special moments.




























(The secret super power of keeping three attentive and joyful...fruit gummies!)