Happy Father's Day!

We love you and can't wait to see you! Only 6 more days!

Two

There's a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that starts out like this:

"There was a little girl, who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead,
And when she was good, she was very, very good,
But when she was bad she was horrid."

Ryan's mom is convinced that this poem is written about a two-year-old girl. I think she's right. Our spirited little Maddie turns two today. I have been thinking a lot lately about her and how I would describe her personality.

• She is definitely full of life. Whenever we are apart and she sees me again (even if I've just gone down stairs for a few minutes), she raises her hands in the air and shouts "Mama!" as if I've been gone for days. I love it. 
• She loves attention. She will often say hello to strangers as we pass them in the grocery store.
• She doesn't take long to warm up to people or to voice her opinion about how she feels in any given situation. For example, just the other day she was playing on the slide in my parents' backyard and took a little spill. A neighbor was over and saw the accident and rushed over to help her up. "NOOOO!" she squawked to the man she had never met. She did not want his help.
• She is still one tough cookie. Just today she fell off her chair and did a somersault, landing on her back. She popped back up in a split-second and didn't blink an eye.
• She is very independent. Heaven help the person who tries to aid her in buckling her seat belt.
• She might possibly be the world's pickiest eater (what happened to my baby who loved guacamole, hummus, and just about anything else within her reach?) Every night I place dinner in front of her and every night she looks at me and states, "NO! I no want it!" 
• Whenever I sing her a song she tells me, "Good job, Mama!"
• She has become my little shadow over the past week or two. I think it's her way of coping with all of the changes she has been through lately. 
• She loves to chase Isaac anywhere and everywhere and I am so glad they enjoy each others' company
• She loves to play "Name that Tune." Isaac usually hums a song and Maddie tries to guess what it is (more often than not it is the theme song to one of their favorite cartoons. I'm embarrassed to admit that they know a lot of theme songs...). The other day during nap time I put Davis and Maddie to bed at the same time (they share a room here at Grandma's). She started to play Name that Tune with Davis only she was the one doing all the humming. He didn't play back. 

Maddie's my little princess and I can't imagine my life without her. I am so proud to call her my daughter.

Feliz Cumpleanos Princesa! 

All photos courtesy of Miss Chrissy Jo.

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...