Highchair history...

Well, Mead is finally big enough to use the highchair. Granted, she needs a little help sitting up straight, and she needs some extra cushioning for her head, but she's using it nonetheless. I love this highchair because it is the one my brother and I used when we were babies. It is really heavy duty and, obviously, built to last. Last summer we had a friend work on it to tighten up the loose spots, and it has been working great! Here's to family heirlooms.

First Day of School!

Well, it happened... Laine started school. I can't believe I have a child who is old enough to be in school already! Where did the time go?

Here she is wearing her new backpack as we headed out the door to walk to school, which is so fun that we can do that, by the way.


Here we are at the door to the school. Laine is pretending to be shy - maybe it was an anxious moment.

Laine and her classmates were meeting Janie, the class rat. Supposedly she's an awesome pet to have in a preschool class. We'll learn more about her as the year goes on.

And this is where I left Laine playing when I finally said goodbye. She barely gave me a hug since she was so distracted by these water/gel shaker things. It made it easy for me to leave her - no tears! Several moms walked out together, all with dry eyes. I think we were all glad our kids seemed so excited to be there.

Laine came home tired and hungry, but it seems like she had a good time at school. Yay for a good first day! I think it will be a gradual process to hear from her what she actually did at school though... hard to tell from the mouth of a three-year-old what went on during the morning :-)

Last Day of Summer

Laine started school today... pictures of that moment coming soon. But yesterday I felt the need to make Laine's "last day of summer" significant. Even though Laine is only going to school two half-days a week, it is still a big transition. So we celebrated by going to the new City Garden in downtown St. Louis with some friends.

The park was just built in July, and it is right in the middle of downtown St. Louis. There are tons of things to climb on and a lot of water to play in.


Caleb just adores Mead, and he kept her company while Laine was running around.


Laine and her friends had a blast! Next time we'll actually bring a bathing suit.

Exersaucer Fun

Mead loves standing in her Exersaucer. Whoever came up with this wonderful toy was brilliant!

Playing teacher

Laine loves her new play room. She tells almost everyone who comes over, "Come to my play room with me." Most recently I found her being "teacher" to her stuffed animals. As I walked by I heard her say, "Okay, boys and girls..."

Sitting up

Mead is finally able to sit up now. She's a little wobbly still, and she can't get up on her own, but she stayed up long enough for me to take her picture a few times - what a big girl!

First Family Vacation

We recently got back from our first official family vacation. Mead has never traveled anywhere before, and the rest of us have only traveled in the past to see family or friends. Those things are great, but we wanted to take a trip with just the four of us and no agenda, just some fun time together.

We went to Great Wolf Lodge, in Kansas City, Kansas, and we had a blast! I would highly recommend this water park resort for families with children. It is a great way to get away without having to drive all over town to get to the fun activities.

Here's Laine sporting the wardrobe of the vacation - bathing suits most of the time.

Mead enjoyed checking out the hotel furniture, among other things. Isn't she cute!

Here we are playing in the water spouts. Notice Mead trying to catch the water in her hands!


And the highlight of the water park was the water slides. Laine was so brave going down the big slides with Mommy and Daddy. She tried them all and then got hooked on her favorite ones.

All in all we had a great time and look forward to possibly going again in the future - maybe next time we can bring some friends along with us for the kids to play with in the water. Then again, maybe we'll just make it an "official family vacation."

Sleeping Beauty

Just wanted to share a glimpse of our adorable little one as she sleeps. We recently introduced Mead to "Dot," who is her new lovie. She's made by the same people who made Koko (Laine's lovie), and we already have two on hand, just in case!

What a mess!

Here's a great face to match the terrific mess she made while playing in the dirt with a friend the other day!

Adoration and Doctor Check-Ups

Mead adores her big sister. Even though she often gets scraped, poked and otherwise abused, she keeps coming back for more because she loves Laine so much. They're really cute to watch playing together. It can only imagine how much Mead will "shadow" Laine when she gets big enough to mimic her.

On another note, I recently took both girls to the doctor for their check-ups. Everyone looks healthy and is growing well. Laine 75% for height, 50% for weight. Mead is 50% for height and 25% for weight.

Purina Farms

Here's some more shots of Purina Farms, which is another one of St. Louis' fun, free attractions for kids and families.

Rope swing and tractor tricyles

Wagon ride and dog show with the long jump into the swimming pool

Family Visit

Nan and Pop came in town for a few days last week. We visited Purina Farms, among other things, and had a great time.

Nan and Pop also helped us get some things done around the house - in particular we stripped some wallpaper off the front hallway of our house. It was a lot of work, but it looks so much better now! Thank you so much, Mom and Alex, for all your help.

Ordination

Penny's ordination service was last night. I didn't get any pictures except for this one of the two of us, but the whole thing was amazing!

It was a beautiful service, with wonderful music, a great sermon by our pastor from Greenville, Andy Lewis, and challenging and sobering charges by the pastors from Covenant Pres. Thank you to everyone who came and who has been praying for us and encouraging us during our journey of seminary and preparation these past three years. We couldn't have done it without you!