Bedtime conversation with Rachel

Here's an excerpt from a conversation I had with Rachel tonight at bedtime. She was being super sweet (she was really tired after taking no nap today).... we were both lying on her bed after finishing reading stories, and she was playing with my hair as the conversation began:

"I like you, Mommy..."
"Oh, I'm so glad... I like you too, Rachel!"
"I like you... even though you have black hair!"
(laughing) "Well, thanks! You're silly. What color would you rather it be?"
"Pink! And mine, too. Pink.... And Daddy's hair can be blue! Sticking up on top, and blue."

Wilson Park with Ingrid, Chris, & Anna

We had a fun time at Wilson Park on Tuesday afternoon with Rachel's friend Chris and his mom, Ingrid, and baby sister Anna. Rachel & Chris always play really well together, so it was great to see them again. Also, it was the first time we had been to a playground since Caroline has been walking this well, and she LOVED the freedom of roaming around and climbing! It was a perfect early fall afternoon!

Caroline is our little climber in the family. She almost gave me several heart attacks as she insisted on climbing the dome-shaped thing leftover from the 70's. (I'm not sure why the park still has it, but the kids love it as much as we did 30 years ago!). Anyway -- here's an excerpt of our fearless child in action.

Montreat with the Ruvos

We had a great time in Montreat this past weekend with the Ruvo family. We played on the playground, splashed in the creek, walked around Lake Susan, and enjoyed relaxing at my grandparents' former house.

If you haven't seen the Ruvos on our blog in past entries, they are: Andy (the dad), Rachel (the mom), Gabi (age 6), Amelia (age 4), and Laurel (12 mo.). Andy and Brian work together and met as residents about 6 years ago; Rachel and I enjoy sharing mommy advice with each other; and our kids have a great time playing together.








Naked baby in the creek!
Caroline was fearless and loved being in the COLD water! She ended up naked because we didn't think to put on her swimsuit before venturing down to the playground.


Getting 3 kids to smile and pose together is tough....


...but getting 5 of them to smile at the same time is even harder!


We discovered that it helps to tickle the babies from behind the wall....


...and eventually everyone is laughing!

Caroline the mall walker

Well, in a matter of days, Caroline has gone from modest steps to all-out walking! It's so much fun to see the progression. All day today she was practicing at home; then tonight we walked around University Mall after a quick dinner out, and Caroline was walking all over the place! The best part was how proud she was -- she would turn her head as she walked past people, just beaming with her smile, trying SO hard to get their attention because of how proud she was of herself. It was hilarious -- she would try to walk straight while looking sideways, which then led to a fall, then a laugh & a giggle, and boom! -- she'd be right back up, doing it all over again. Oh, if only we had had our camera with us... it was so adorable. (Keep in mind that the Frankenstein awkardness of her walk makes it that much cuter!) Everyone was so proud of her, especially Rachel, but no one more than Caroline herself.

Caroline takes 22 steps!!

We are so excited that Caroline is finally on the verge of walking! She has been taking one, two, and four steps since mid July, but never actually "walking" -- until yesterday & today! Today she walked from place to place around the kitchen a bunch of times, with the biggest smile on her face, so proud! Here's one excerpt.

More Labor Day beach photos

I finally went through the rest of the pictures from Labor Day weekend and found some good ones for posting -- enjoy!




Grammie pulling Rachel & Chase on the saucers -- they loved it!


Caroline just loved climbing into and out of the buckets!


Rachel and Chase had fun on the tricycles, chasing Brian & Kevin around!



Here's Caroline on her first tricycle ride -- she felt like such a big girl and was so proud of herself!



More fun with the cousins on the beach -- next year Neils will be able to play, too!

Updated pictures of the new nephew/cousin

Here are a few new pictures of our newest nephew/cousin, Neils Vandersea. We were fortunate to spend most of Saturday, Monday, and part of Tuesday with him last weekend (Labor Day weekend). He is precious, and a good sweet baby!




He is just SO CUTE !!!