James

James is growing into my little man. He often walks inside and presents me with flowers and tells me he loves me. He is also particular about saying goodnight; it always has to end with an eskimo kiss. I am enjoying this new stage of James. He is so much more pleasant to be with. He also takes good care of Ruthie. Last night, for instance, Ruth was throwing a monster tantrum because she wanted his easter candy. Finally he said, "it's okay mommy, I am done with it" and handed it to her.

Here is James as a "soldier":

mowing the lawn with daddy

taking his beloved "ha-hee" for a stroll (good thing that little sisters can provide the right equipment)

Randoms

Life seems to fly by at an amazing pace. These are some of my favorite pictures last month:

The other day, Ruthie came into the kitchen looking like this...

One by one, the boys followed. They explained that they were Ruth's guards.

We extended our back patio cover and rehung Joseph's swing. The kids love it! .... James especially.

When David puts on his shoes, Ruth puts on her shoes, too.

Birthday Time

I celebrated my birthday few weeks ago. The day was great. While I was getting ready for the day, David rounded up James and Ruth to help them make birthday cards for me. It was so sweet. We ended the day with decadent German Chocolate cake: 4 layers of yumminess.

These are the kids leading me to my surprise birthday cards

Ruthie was glad for free reign of the glue

Goodbye

A few weeks ago, we said goodbye to a good friend. David and her daughter, Monica, have been buddies since toddlerhood. We've had countless outings together at the park, the beach, and at each other's homes for playdates and babysitting swaps. Goodbye, Marisol, we will miss you!

Rewind a few years, and this is the same three kids. Amazing how fast time goes...

Now with the siblings, we are quite a crowd!

New Developments

I am not one to post pictures of "things" but I thought I'd share the latest on our hobbys. Joseph has become quite the genealogy enthusiast. A few years ago, he began a project that would result in a photo collage of our ancestors. My sister, Katie, made us the beautiful genealogy tree to go in the center. We are quite excited about how it turned out. The pictures are fun because they spark stories and discussions with our children. It is amazing how much these people sacrificed for their descendants. I am sure that some of them never imagined their picture mounted on a great-great-great grandson/ daughter's wall.

My hobby of teaching dance still remains. I love it! I feel so blessed to get paid to do something that I love. This year has really been quite challenging (in a good way) for me, because the classes that I am teaching are very advanced and it is often a struggle to keep up with the demands of curriculum and choreography. It is quite satisfying to see my students (some of whom I've had for 6 years) really begin to take off. I finally got my first pair of "professional" grade tap shoes. So far, they are very uncomfortable. They do slide across the floor, which is pretty fun.

D-A-D spells playtime

To be 18 months

Ruth has really been fun to watch these past few weeks. She fully desires independence in getting dressed (this includes putting on shoes, of course), sitting up to the table, eating, and even washing her hands. My favorite thing about Ruth is that she loves to sing. I will often hear her in the backseat of the car singing away to the tunes that we play. It is all jibberish except for a handful of recognizable words. Her favorite songs so far are "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam" and "Follow the Prophet". Though the words don't come out quite right, she definitely knows every word. The other funny thing about Ruth is that she is a quite keen on being tidy. Only one toy may be in the bath at a time, the windows must be regularly 'cleaned' with bubble juice, and when mommy says to clean up, CLEAN UP!

"down" means up

"be" means blanky

"nana" means food

"Pie-Pie" means Pilot

It is interesting to see how different girls are from boys. She hates being tossed, swung, or tipped upside down. She has a huge fascination with anything that colors. She is good at managing things for the boys (ie finding lost shoes or toys). I sure love my little Ruth!