photos – The Nearest Future

First Day of Kindergarten!

Today was Mimi’s first day of kindergarten! She’s been a little nervous and has had lots of questions, mostly about if she’ll make friends and whether the kids will like her.

The day we got her new backpack she spent 15 minutes trying it on and practicing her “nice smile” in the mirror. She wanted to make sure the kids at Kindergarten “won’t be scared” and would know she’s friendly.

(That sound you hear is my heart breaking a little-oof.)

But this morning as I snapped a few pictures of her before we headed to school she struck this pose and declared, “I’m a super hero!”

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The extra-wide stance cracks me up but I couldn’t agree with her more. All the heart-eyes.

Normally our carpool will drop the kids off in the morning but today I walked her into school. She didn’t cry at all and neither did I. We were both troopers 😉

She came home happy and looking forward to going back. I’m so proud of her.

Blackberries at Meemaw’s House

I loved growing up in western Washington. My parents still live there and since we don’t get to see them very often I tried to take the kids up every summer to visit. This year my siblings also came so we had a family reunion which was really great.

My parents live on a couple of acres which they’ve planted with fruit trees, berries, grapes, and a big garden. The first morning after we got there the kids ran outside in their pjs to pick some blackberries for breakfast.When they’re older I hope they remember small moments like these.

Parenting Win

Thank you for your kindness! While I was in the middle of recovering it was difficult to talk about the miscarriage, but now that I’m feeling better it felt cathartic to acknowledge and discuss our loss. Your support was incredibly lovely. So thank you.

And now back to a mainstay of this blog: pics of the kids! After church today Mimi and I busted out the stamps and art supplies.

Afterwards I was pretty happy that I had splurged on “extremely washable” ink.

I am so grateful for our funny little bug.

For the Christmas Card

I’ve been taking a lot of pictures of the kids lately in order to get some for our Christmas card. I ended up with some shots I liked but then I had to used Photoshop to remove ketchup from around E’s mouth (I really wished I had just thought to wipe his mouth) and snot from under Mimi’s nose.

I tend to obsess over projects like this and spent entirely too long futzing around with the photos and layout so it was a big relief when I finally sent the cards to the printer last night. I’m excited to see how they turned out.

Ocean Shores iPhone Photos

There have been a few hiccups (mostly due to a teething baby) but so far this vacation has been wonderful. I can’t download the photos from my camera until I get home but here are a few I took with my iPhone using the Hipstmatic app.

Top to bottom: my brother David and his son, E waking up from a nap at our hotel, E tearing around on the beach.

Wrapped in (Miranda’s) Love

N’s sister Miranda knitted Mimi this pink blanket. I love the yarn she used–the blanket is insanely soft and perfect for snuggling! I’m tempted to knit a throw blanket out of the same yarn for our couch–it would be perfect to curl up with while watching tv.

While I was taking these pictures E decided that one thing was sadly lacking–him! What a little ham. 🙂

Speaking of ham…I hope you have a happy Easter! (See what I did there?–Transitions!) I’m scheduled to teach our Relief Society lesson in church this Sunday and so I’m looking forward to preparing some remarks on Christ’s resurrection.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Wrapped in (Meemaw’s) love

Several family members and friends graciously gave us beautiful handmade baby blankets for Mimi, and I thought it would be fun to take her photo with each of them.

This lovely quilt was made by my mom. It is all-the-more special since her health has been poor lately and it took quite a bit of effort for her to make it.

Lately I’ve been tempted to try my hand at quilting. I definitely do not need any more hobbies (N will agree wholeheartedly with that statement) but I love browsing fabrics and putting together combinations I like. We shall see.

Fun with Cousins

We had a great weekend. N and I had fun catching up with Ken and Mindy and E had a blast hanging out with cousins Dylan and Caitlin. This was the first time he was old enough to (mostly) keep up with them.

He was pretty bummed to see them head home and begged to go to the airport with them. I seriously considered it (without telling Mindy) but ultimately declined (last minute plane tickets are pricey!)

Seeing how quickly the kids are growing up makes me feel old. (See this photo of Dylan and E for comparison.)

And now that I’ve had my fun I’m finally going to stop procrastinating and finish my taxes (blarg.)

Mimi’s Blessing

Yesterday we took advantage of having Ken and Mindy in town and had Mimi’s blessing at church–a ceremony where she was officially given her name.

I am so grateful that sweet Mimi is part of our family and that our family has been sealed so we can be together always.

When I think about it I feel ridiculously happy.

Pajama Time!

My sister-in-law Mindy sent us these cute matching pajamas. I wanted to take some pictures of the kids wearing them before Mimi outgrows her (size 6-months!) pair. Mimi’s little football-shaped torso cracks me up.

I know I’ve been posting a lot of photos of the kids lately, but their grandparents comprise a significant voting bloc of this blog’s readers and I feel obligated to give the people what they want. 🙂 I hope I’m not boring everyone else.

I want to take some more creative, non-kid photos but right now I seem to be lacking both inspiration and time to do so. Maybe once spring is here in earnest (it’s snowing outside at this very moment!)

I’m excited about our weekend: Mindy and N’s brother Ken and their kids are in town and going to stay with us. They are two of my very favorite people (I have several) but we don’t get to see them that often so I’m really looking forward to it.

I hope you have a great weekend!