Saturday, January 23, 2010

Sunsets and window-watchers

Ok, so I know that we've been putting up a lot of sunset pictures this winter...that's because as opposed to the summer when the sun is going down at around 10:30 or so, it goes down around 5pm. And, the colors are always amazing, so we shoot some pictures whenever we can. Well, the other night, Jen left for a quick errand, so I was alone in the house with the girls. Jen texts me almost immediately when she gets to the road to say the sunset is amazing, and so I had to go look. So, I'm left with no car, and this GORGEOUS sunset, so I think quick on how to get out to see it. (Please note, this is over Christmas break, and the girls were enjoying an all day jammie day, so going for a quick walk was out of the question. I suddenly remembered that in our windows in our bedroom, we have these nice 2 foot ledges just perfect for little girls to sit on! So, I ask the girls to stay put, and I go snap some pictures where they can see me standing on the highway...well, when I turn to come back to the house, they decided that the window they were sitting in may as well have been a stage, so they preened and smiled at me and really enjoyed their little perch! Here's a couple of them, and one of the sunset...



Thursday, January 14, 2010

Hidden talent

So, we've said recently how we're loving watching our girls growing up and learning their personalities. One very definable character trait of Cailyn's is that she is a quiet observer, not trying anything first hand until she's seen it done, and knows how to do it in her head. She's done this with walking, talking, and now evidently, with Guitar Hero. Normally she loves to be the dancer as Jen sings with Hannah, and I play the guitar part. Well, tonight, I told the girls that we'd have a quick session before bed. Cailyn emphatically stated that she was singing, and hurried over and grabbed the mic. "OK" I thought...so I got it all set up. She asked for "Hello Goodbye", so with me on the guitar, Hannah playing the drums, and Jen helped Cailyn out a little bit...well, take a look for yourself, but I think Cailyn did a pretty good job! And fair play to Jen for letting me post this...



Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Hannah's Party

Sorry these are so late! Saturday ended up being a GREAT day! This year we decided to give Hannah her first "friend" birthday party at a local haunt that is just incredibly popular with all the local children. It's called Monkey Business, and for months, Hannah's been asking to go there. So, we invited about 10 of her friends from school, including a couple of their siblings that are Cailyn's age. It's a great place...basically a warehouse that has just TONS of bouncy houses, and climbing cages like you've seen in Mc'Ds or something...just a whole lot bigger. We had a great day, and Hannah had a GREAT time celebrating with her friends, and we had fun hanging out with all the parents, some of whom we hadn't really met yet other than picking Hannah up from school, so it helped us make some great connections. Anyway, here's some pics of the day...

Big 5 year old!!

Fitting picture for "monkey business" don't you think?



Jen has made some great cakes for the girls' birthdays. This year, Hannah asked for a cake with Belle on it, and pink icing. Jen hand-made this cake for her! Great job Jen!!

It took a couple tries, but she got all the candles out!

Cailyn was having a great time all day!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

Happy Birthday Hannah!!

So, today is the day...we have a 5 year old in our house! Today, 5 years ago, our lives were richly blessed by having Hannah, our first. Life changed drastically for us when she came, but I had no idea just how awesome being a dad would be. She IS my little girl, and no matter how many of these birthday's pass by, she always will be. Over the last year, we have seen some amazing things out of her. We've moved to Ireland, she basically taught herself to read (no, I'm not exaggerating!) and has learned quite a bit of a new language. She is incredible. Her sense of humor, her tender heart, her laughter and joy she finds in life is a blessing to all of us, and we are so much better with her in our lives. Hannah, as your Parents, we are honored to have you as our daughter! You amaze us all the time and bring so much joy to our hearts. We hope this year of being a big 5 year old is incredible, and we can't wait to see what life brings your way this year! We love you!!!

Here's a few pics from the last year...