School Daze!

It's the first day of class for Pink #1 and Pink #2

A. strikes a pose before heading out the door to her first day of Kindergarten.

A. took to Kindergarten like a fish to water!

P. was all confidence at home on the morning of her first day of Pre-School.

That confidence waned a bit upon arrival, but once she got through her first day, she became one pre-school loving Pink! 

"Hey!  What about me?"  Au. gets comfortable in her car carrier as she accompanies Mommy on carpools. 

It's the Dog Days of Summer

and the Pinks have been busy trying to stay cool. 

Here's what they did:

Swim Lessons

Keeping with Arizona custom, A & P spent their mornings at the pool perfecting their skills and making waves with their stylish optical accessories.

A. made vast improvements in overcoming her hesitancies towards water.

P. never had any hesitancies towards the water.

Learning the backstroke.

P. was so enthusiastic about swimming that she was described by her teacher as "one crazy little fishy!"  The moniker has stuck and now we call her that at home.

Rainstorms

It doesn't rain often but when it does, it pours.  And the temperature drops just enough that it's physically possible to endure being outside.  Here, Jay risks electrocution to edge our lawn during a monsoon in order to avoid having to do it in the extreme heat. 

With rain, comes mud (we still haven't landscaped that one corner of our yard yet) and with mud comes two little girls who love to roll around in it!  Besides, making mud pies is another excuse to wear those stylish optical accessories.

They even got Au. to join the goggle club.

Post Rainstorm Bike Rides

With Daddy's help, A. has shed her need for training wheels and is now the sleakest, meanest little dirt bike riding beauty on the black top.

Not to be outdone, Au. puts on a mean face too while being introduced to her future bike.

Dance Class

A. & P. took a Disney Princess themed dance class at the local Parks N' Rec.  Here is A. in her Tinkerbell Fairy Friend costume practicing her turns.

P. stretches during warm-ups.

Curler Cuties

Just for fun, the girls decided they wanted to give curlers a try.

 It was a wee bit difficult getting all of P.'s hair wrapped in sponges as it's still rather short in the front, but we at least managed to get the back curled.

Bouncy, Flouncy!!

Au. says, "Why bother with curlers when bald is so beautiful?"



We've Been Haboobed!

On July 5th a very large dust storm--also known by the arabic designation of "haboob"--hit the Phoenix area.  The dust cloud was reportedly over a mile high.  I took this picture while standing on the kids' playset in the backyard just moments before the wall of sand hit our house.  The storm was so thick that the sky went from sunny to black almost instantly.  Needless to say, I spent the better part of the next morning sweeping what seemed like half the Sonoran Desert off my back porch.  Curse you, Haboob!

In the Baby Moment

Grandma called to say she wanted to see more pictures of Au.  We were happy to oblige.

Here she is in her favorite "jailbird" pajamas.  Hey, if being cute is a crime, then she's guilty as charged!

Smiley, smiley!

All tuckered out.

Bedhead

Six consecutive portraits of P.'s typical morning coiffes

 



One Really Big Month!

In April our family returned home to Utah to celebrate Grandma Deena's graduation, Easter, and to hold Au.'s baby blessing with extended family.  

 P. was soooo excited to congratulate Grandma Deena that when she ran up to her to give her a hug, she had so much force travelling with her little 3-year old body that she accidentally knocked Grandma backward into the potted plant.  It was quite the comical moment. 

It's official:  Grandma Deena is now Doctor Deena; although I'm pretty sure we'll still just keep calling her "Mom".

P. finds a pretty blue egg during the family Easter Egg hunt.

 A. skipped over picking up the blue eggs, making a beeline instead to collect all the pink and purple ones.

And after all the eggs had been decorated and hunted, it was finally time for Au. to shine.  Here she is looking simply angelic in the exquisite blessing dress that Grandma Margaret smocked/embroidered/sewed for her.  Seeing her in that dress reminded us all of how close to heaven she really is. 

Au.'s blessing was a wonderful moment for us as parents and for the whole family.  Thank you so much to everyone who came to share this special day with us.

  









Just a Few More Pictures of the Pinks!

One small reason to smile on April 18th

Pinks #1 & #2 decided to take Pink #3 on a make-believe camp out.  This is their version of a "three-pinks" sleeping bag.

Au. proves that she can wear the family color just as well as her older sisters did.

She's Here!!!

Au. S. Taylor was born Tuesday, March 8th at 5:52 pm.

A routine induction became a C-section when it was discovered that our little acrobat had flipped in the womb and was lying transverse.  So we have a bunch of shots of Mommy and Daddy in scrubs as a result.  Enjoy!

Weighing in at 8 lbs. 7 oz. and 21.5 inches long, she came to earth with a head full of fuzzy dark hair and very sweet spirit.

And now it's time to meet the rest of the family....



Getting ready for baby!

Thanks to the wonders of technology (and weekly ultrasounds ordered by the doctor) our family gets a 3-D sneek peek at it's newest member.

(the twisty-looking thing on the side of her face is the umbilical cord)

"No, I'm not having twins!"--is a phrase that Mommy has been saying a lot lately in response to the rather inconsiderate queries of strangers.  Yes folks, there's only one baby in there--one baby and her olympic sized swimming pool of amniotic fluid (fluid retention is a common and rather uncomfortable side effect of gestational diabetes).  This picture was taken at 37 weeks.

Happy 3-years old to P.! 

She celebrated her birthday weekend by going on a bike ride with her Daddy and sister, then hitting McDonald's for lunch.  Thanks to Mommy for the delicious cake and to all her family and friends for the birthday wishes.  A great time was had by all.

And a special big thank you to A. for letting P. wear her birthday crown.