Leap

With it being February 29, a day that only comes around once every 4 years, I figured I should document a little something.
This is what my days are like lately...hanging out with these two, and not a whole lot else. {Hence the more infrequent blogging.} I know these days with both of them home with me all-day-every-day are numbered, so I'm soaking them up. I don't even want to think how much will change before we see this date again.

Truett at eight months

I am not feeling ready for my baby to not be a baby anymore. Try as I may to prevent the inevitable...it's happening right before my eyes. Truett is growing up.

Our little boy makes friends everywhere he goes. He is so smiley and content. He's never once cried when I've dropped him off in a nursery.

Truett's two bottom teeth have arrived. We've transitioned to more table foods recently. Avocado, grapes, and turkey are early favorites. Thankfully, he's not a picky eater. Although he doesn't like bananas...what kid doesn't like bananas?

Maren is thrilled with Truett's increasing levels of interaction with us. He loves to play peak-a-boo, so-big and other mimicking games. He's started to wave and 'talk' more, which has also been fun.

We're so thankful for our little man and the joy he brings to our family. It is a gift to be called to parent him!

These two...

...make me laugh out loud every day.






There dad is pretty great, too, but I never seem to think to take pictures of him. *wink*

Chi Gamma: January 2012

Occasionally, I've shared about my little monthly craft group. At our first meeting we jokingly referred to ourselves as a sorority of sorts, which was the origin of chi gamma. (Get it...Craft Group...I know, clever.) Well, it stuck. We rotate homes each month, and the host determines the project. 2012 got off to a great start with bracelet making at Jaime's house. Here are the makings all ready to go...

Jaime (on the left) was a fabulous teacher. These bracelets required great lengths of string, which proved to be difficult for some of us to manage. Thankfully, Jaime had perfected the technique and helped most of us out of tangles along the way.

Here's me and Jaime with our new bracelets...I only made one. S...l...o...w...p...o...k...e.

The group with newly adorned wrists. Can you find me? Remember...only one bracelet.
Most of the girls made 2 different kinds of bracelets. These things are all over the blogosphere and pinterest. I love the layered look...I guess I need to have another night of bracelet-making so I actually have more layers.

I love my craft group. I'm contemplating a little series on 'how to start a group'. I participate in a few different monthly groups. The evenings away throughout the month really help me to be a better mom and wife. I'm so grateful for a husband who supports me and encourages me to have a few hobbies. What do you do to stay connected to your friends?

Happy Valentine's Day!

We've been in a Valentine's flurry around our house. Maren and I made all her Valentines for her party at church. She used a stamp to put her name on the back of our little heart birds. I cut everything out and she glued it all together. We had such a great time working on these. Have I mentioned before how much I love that Maren is into creative projects? She is...and I love it!

I wanted to put up a few Valentine's decorations, but didn't want to spend any money. My mom gave me a square berry wreath a few years ago for Christmas. I love having it out during the holidays, and this year I transformed it (temporarily!) for Valentine's Day. I cut out letters on my cricut, glued them to some book pages and used mini-clothespins and string to attach them to the wreath.

I also strung up some vintage Valentines that I've collected throughout the years.



Maren dressed herself for her party yesterday. She was sure to wear plenty of red.

In other news...Truett is completely mobile. He has been for over a month now. He has been quite pleased to discover every nook and cranny around our home. We're working with Maren to keep her little things up off the floor. Nothing is safe from this little guy. He is so curious and quiet, which is an unfortunate combination for such a small boy. Or, maybe just unfortunate for his mother. I think he quite likes it, actually!

Since it's snowing outside...

...I figured today would be a good day to finish posting about our Christmas. Yup, it's February. I actually do have a few fun Valentine's things to share, but that will have to wait just a bit longer.

We drove to Michigan for Christmas. With two kids. From Colorado. It could not have gone any better. Thankfully, we acquired a minivan last fall, which made for a much smoother cross-country voyage. Our first day in the car we drove for 11 hours with just one stop. It was nothing short of a Christmas miracle. Maren and Truett were traveling champs and kept each other occupied.

We were thrilled to spend almost two weeks with my family in Michigan. Christmas is my favorite holiday, and it was sweet to spend it at 'home' this year. The last time we spent Christmas in Michigan we were all struck with a terrible flu. I'm so thankful we all remained healthy this time around.

One of my brothers and his family now live in Grand Rapids, so we got to attend their church on Christmas Eve. It was such a special service, and we loved seeing where their family worships now. Here we are dressed in our Christmas best...

My mom and dad with the kids...even with miles and miles between us, my kids know and love their Grams and Grandpa!

After church on Christmas Eve we returned to Ben and Allison's house for a delicious dinner and some festivities. Ben dressed up as Santa, and the kids were so enthralled. {Clockwise from top left...me, Ben and Zach...Santa Ben and Allison...the older kids watching Santa leave...cousins Will, Paige, Annie, Maren and Truett}

Maren was so excited for Christmas this year, and I fully expected her to be up before 6:00 am. Surprisingly, Truett woke up first and so Brett, Truett, and I were sitting awake waiting for Maren. I think she slept until almost 7...must have been the excitement of Christmas Eve wore her out!

Christmas through the eyes of our kids...Maren got her chicken bag {sometime I'll share that story!} and Truett mostly just rolled around on the floor and sucked on anything he could get his hands on!

The rest of our vacation was filled with more time with family. Maren, Paige and Will played so well together. Shockingly, we only had a tiny bit of snow for one day. Maren did love tubing down the hill in my parents' backyard while the snow lasted. The weather was unseasonably warm, so my dad and Brett took the kids to the park one afternoon. We also spent a good deal of time lounging around. I love the picture of Zach {my other brother} and Brett both sitting with their phones. That picture aside, we managed to remain relatively 'unplugged' for the duration of our trip. It was such a nice break!

We made several attempts at capturing a decent picture of the five cousins together...this is my favorite. These five {4 years and under} kept us on our toes all week!
I'm already looking forward to our next trip to Michigan...it's hard to live so far from 'home', but I'm thankful for these memorable times we spend there. So, one last time...until December...Merry Christmas!