The Last Days of Winter

These pictures are from a trip to our neighborhood park that Kate and I made specifically to play in the leaves. I realized that winter was drawing to a close and Kate hadn't really played in leaves at all this year. So, we went to our park, which has a wonderful grove of oak trees, and made a big pile of leaves. Kate was tickled to sit in it and inspect each twig, acorn, and leaf she encountered. I love that she's an outdoorsy girl.

Then & Now...

Prom, April 1996

Prom, February 2009

My parents came into town to watch Kate so Josh and I could go out for Valentine's Day. We attended a "Second Chance Prom" hosted by our Sunday school class at church. It was fun to dress up and spend a night on the town with friends.

Now it's time for so long...

As if we needed any more proof of Kate's fascination--nay, obsession--with Blue's Clues, yesterday morning Josh was heading out the door for work as usual and he said, "Bye Kate."

Kate replied, "Bye Steve."

Hallelujah! We're on the mend!

As our family and some friends know, for the past few weeks Kate has been battling a terrible sickness that kept her running a high fever for 9 consecutive days. We made three trips to the doctor during that time, and after testing her blood, urine, and a chest x-ray, they deduced that it must be super-duper virus that just had to run its course. We were so thankful that her fever broke on Wednesday and she seems to have made a full recovery. Thank you to everyone who prayed for her! (Now we just have to wean her off tv, eating on the couch, waking up every 3 hours, wanting to sleep in our bed, and every other bad habit we allowed in order to keep our sanity over the last two weeks.) Oi vey.

Christmas Wishes

Josh and I are discovering how much fun it is to enjoy Christmas through the eyes of a child. We pray the years ahead are filled with the same joy and wonderment we were blessed with this year. From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

(Though we wish we could claim credit for these pics, the props belong to Rocky Conly. Thanks Rocky!)

Jesus Loves Me/Counting/If You're Happy Medley

This is guaranteed to be the cutest thing you've seen today. (Okay, I'm bragging, but I can't help it.)

UPDATE: After I posted this, my mom emailed and said she thinks Kate was trying to sing the second verse of Jesus Loves Me instead of starting to count. After re-listening, I think she's right. (In my defense, "Little ones to" sounds a lot like "One, two"...but I still feel sheepish in translating incorrectly. ) Oh well...it made a nice segue.

Trimming the Tree

This was Kate's first year to put the star on the Christmas tree. I remember doing that growing up, taking turns between my brother and myself, and it always seemed like a special treat. I hope Kate thinks so too someday.