Spring Riding

 We decided to take the girls to the YMCA this afternoon for a swim.  The weather was nice when we headed out so Allison & I rode our bikes (she was on her tag-along).  Of course it was a rather windy downpour on our way home but Allison was still a good sport and rode back with me, singing the whole way.  Although she did ask why we were going so slow up the hill to our neighborhood.  I had to get a picture of her spring biking get-up.  Note the Keen sandals with no socks and too-short pants....I was sure she was going to complain about being cold but she didn't!

Bowling

Our community group went bowling together this weekend.  Allison was inspired to bowl like her friends, Daniel & Marie, without the ramp.  It was pretty cute and she was super excited when she got two spares!

...And the Heidi-bug was very excited to get in on the action a bit this time, too.  She loved pushing the ball down the ramp.....and then we had to hold on, she wanted to run down the aisle pushing the ramp every time.  And she is strong!

Allison's First Pedicure

 We had a lunch date with Mel, Jodi & Bekah and I noticed how rough Allison's finger nails looked which prompted Jodi telling us about a little nail saloon where the girls could get pedicures and their nails painted relatively inexpensively - so the girls' lunch also became a pedicure party.  Allison was ecstatic, especially considering I rarely paint her nails for her (I'm not very good at it).

Jodi & I enjoyed time to chat while our girls got spoiled.  They ended their time by drying their nails - Allison's toe polish was already dinged up a little bit by the time we headed home.  At least she hasn't seemed to notice!

Random Snapshots

I have a host of pictures on my phone, none of which are really worthy of a post on their own so here is a completely random collection!

 This girl can be a little moody in the evenings after daycare (where she only takes 1 short nap!) so our evenings are spent outside with a pacifier.  It works wonders.  And I'm a little sad but she outgrew those shoes this week.  She had been stumbling over them for a few days and has been walking better since we moved her up.

 Allison & her buddy Annie take swim lessons together on Friday mornings and they are both getting so much better.  It is really fun to see their progress, they can both swim over half the length of the pool (which is an accomplishment considering they haven't been taught how to breathe while swimming yet!)

 We did 'celebrate' St. Patrick's day this year (if you call Lucky Charms, Lamb Stew & Aunt Joan's green jello salad a celebration).  We borrowed this book from the library and Allison loved reading it.

 At the end of her first ride!

 We took Heidi to one of Uncle Tills' favorite restaurants this weekend.  And she was a BIG fan.  Maybe next time we'll actually get to see Uncle Tills there!

 Heidi LOVES the green smoothies Marks makes and for months I've been spooning her some out of my mug.  Today she grabbed the mug and put the straw in her mouth and managed to get some.  She was delighted.  Ecstatic might be the right word - no more waiting for me to slowly spoon it out.  I might be a little excited about this, too!

And today we watched the Beaver Women's basketball team play the first round of the NCAA tourney - it was a nice win.  Now we'll see how they do in the next round, it will be a tough one.  I think this is the first time we've ever let Allison eat dinner in front of the t.v. - sometimes it is worth it, though!  

Finished in 2014 No. 3

 I bought a roll of fat-eighth Amy Butler Soul Blossoms fabric a few years ago on a trip to visit Leslie.  They sat around for a long time and then I found a tutorial for a 12" 'X' Sting block and knew it would work well with these fabrics.  So I've slowly been working on this for a long time.  I finished it up this weekend to send up to Brittney, she's auctioning it off at a fundraiser for the youth group she works with.  I have to admit, a part of me is sad to see it go, it is definitely a cheerful quilt.  Now that I know how quickly it goes together, though, I think I'll be making another one!

Spring Sunshine

 I was thrilled to see the forecast for this weekend - sunny in the 60s - it really doesn't get better than that!  We took the girls to Salem on Saturday to play with our friends the Moody's and our first family bike ride of 2014 (it was a short ride, we're breaking Heidi in slowly).

 Heidi loved bouncing with the big kids on this bridge.

 The binky might have helped her keep quiet during the ride!

 And Heidi got her first ride on the carousel.  I wouldn't say she was a big fan but Allison is.

 And it was the perfect weekend for a baseball game - the Moody's were able to join us for this, too!  One of these kiddos was there to watch the game...and the other to eat some snacks....any guess which is which?  As a hint I'll tell you by the end of the game Allison was sitting two rows ahead of us with her dear bag of Kettle Corn being clutched oh so tightly!  It was a great day but sadly the Beavers lost.

Lil' Wobbler

 Well, the Heidi-bug is getting moved out of the infant nursery to the 'wobbler' nursery next week.  She does really walk all the time now and just today she was starting to do some running and spinning (that might have been the result of the cupcake she ate after dinner).  We love our little 'wobbler' although it is a little sad to see her growing up and moving on.  We've had a lot of sunshine lately so I've been taking lots of pictures of her wobbling!

 She does like to play with cars, pushing them around!

 I LOVE those toes!!

And her new favorite food?  Frozen blueberries.  Especially when she is grumpy.

Brought to you by the Letter 'O'

O is for.....

Orange....

Owls & Ohio....

 And Octopus!!

A Big 1-Year-Old

 The Heidi-bug hit some big milestones in the past month.  She has started walking independently pretty much all the time now.  She has been able to take steps since before her birthday but she wasn't interested in walking.  Until now.  She wants to walk everywhere.  And generally she enjoys holding my hand.  Unless she sees Allison running off - then sticking with Mommy is torture!

She also has started saying 'Hi!' with regularity and appropriately.  And it would melt your heart.  I never realized how often I say 'hi' to her until she started saying it back.  She has no problem communicating her demands and 'No!' even without words so I'm thankful her first word is so sweet.  She is also saying 'mamamama' and 'dadadadada' often now, too, and we think we're seeing glimpses of signing.  It is quite the adventure to watch her communication skills expand.

She is growing up so fast - I was lucky enough to get to snuggle with her TWICE this weekend as she went down for naps in Bend.  She is quite the little darling when she is sleeping.  And determined whirlwind when she is awake!

Central Oregon

 We had a really fun weekend in Bend with our friends, the Bronson's.  Our kids all had a fabulous time playing and running and jumping around together.  Heidi got a piece of zucchini bread at the Sister's Coffee shop.

 Emma was out running errands on Saturday afternoon so Zeke and Allison played together and they were so cute.  Zeke would follow Allison around and help her with whatever she asked or needed.  She loved having so much attention!

 Allison & Emma worked hard on paper dolls on Sunday morning.

 These kiddos are CrAzY and we love every bit of craziness in them!