Family Pictures

A little over a week ago, my friend Chrissy took some pictures of our family at a park near our home in Iowa. A lot has happened since that little photo shoot!

Isaac and Maddie made a cross-country trek with Ryan's parents from Iowa to Utah in our mini-van.

Ryan drove 24 hours from Iowa to Orlando, Florida, where he will be doing a podiatry externship for the next four weeks.

And meanwhile, Davis and I flew from Iowa to Utah (we thought Davis would do better flying than driving for two days across five states). I think I got the best end of the deal out of anybody.

These pictures mean more to me than ever as my little family will be separated quite a bit over the next 6 or 7 months. They make me smile every time I look at them. I have so much to be thankful for!

I love all of the pictures, but below you will find some of my very favorites.

Thanks again, Chrissy!

End of Preschool Fieldtrip

Yesterday was Isaac's last day of preschool. Here he is with all of his classmates. I love these little boys! Preschool and these cute kids are among things at the top of my long "What I will miss about Iowa" list. We took the boys on a little field trip to celebrate our last day of preschool--eating lunch at Taki Grill, which is a Japanese restaurant where they cook your food in front of you. Here is our master chef getting things started. All the boys loved using the chopsticks as swords, knives, or just sticking them up their noses. Chase watching the show. Lately Isaac loves fire. He insists on passing by the rotisserie chickens every time we are at Costco to see the fire where they are being cooked. I was sure he would love the flames at the Taki Grill. I was wrong. He loved watching the chef throw his knives and make noise, all until he brought out the fire. This was the look on his face throughout most of the meal. He let out a quiet fearful moan through most of lunch, and he kept telling me that he didn't want to see any more fire! He didn't believe me when I told him I would protect him from the flames. Robyn and Harrison watching an egg for the fried rice spin around. Maddie, on the other hand, wasn't phased at all by the giant flames. She loved sitting by Miss Chrissy and her bff, Lyssa. At one point during the show she said to the chef, "Ohhh! Perfect!" Benton was completely enthralled. The kids all behaved really well, especially considering we adults were largely outnumbered-- 5 adults to 9 children. The only tantrum of the outing was thrown by Maddie Moo herself in the front of the restaurant because I was insensitive enough to think she might need help unwrapping her after-dinner mint. It was highly traumatic. My hands were full at the time, so Robyn picked her up and removed her from the premises. Worked great for me because everyone thought she was the mother of the unruly toddler.

Miss Kelly deserved a gold star for catching the food our chef lobbed at her with such grace :) Special thanks to Miss Mandy for all of the photos and to all of Isaac's preschool teachers---what a great year!

This and That

We're still here, just trying to get ready to move and enjoy our last couple of weeks in Iowa. Here are a few recent pictures.

Ryan and the kids at the park (Davis is still trying to master the whole head control thing, but check out all that blonde hair!)

This one's for my baby sister who requested more pictures of Davis

Maddie at the park, sporting her most recent fashion statement---Isaac's dinosaur pajamas along with her black Mary Janes.

He paused just long enough to say cheese--that smile disappeared from his face seconds later when he had a potty accident...

One last park picture

Last weekend was the annual Favorite Things Party, otherwise known as the social event of the season! I took my new favorite homemade jewelry--scrabble tile necklaces---and went home with a beautiful flower and a loaf of Dutch Apple Cinnamon Pecan Bread, a sweet cookbook and some candy, and a couple of new workout DVDs. What's not to love?

Me with Robyn and Laura--two of my favorite friends

Davis was my date to the party. He was the only male in an entire house full of females. As you can see, by the end of the night it started to get to him a little bit and he was ready to hang out with his dad again...

Davis at 5 weeks

Davis is 5 weeks old today. It has been a crazy month to say the least (and it's about to get even crazier as the kids and I prepare to head west while Ryan heads east). He has brought us so much joy and we are so happy he is a part of our family.

Here are a few things we have learned about Davis over the past month:

He tolerates getting smothered by Isaac most of the time.

He loves baths, being swaddled and falling asleep while laying on your chest, and he is not a fan of the Binky--usually he refuses to take one (especially from me--Ryan is better at tricking him into taking it than I am).

He rides the fuss bus most nights for a couple of hours, but will calm right down if we let him play in the tub.
 

He looks more like Isaac (and Ryan) every day.

Davis at 5 weeks

Isaac at 6 weeks