spring break

Jenni (my older sister) and her family came down for a couple of days over their spring break.  Among other things, we visited a fort to the south of us and then headed to the beach!  

Halli with E and A

This wasn't exactly Chloe's first time at the beach, but her first "official" trip decked out in a bathing suit!  

Harrison and the girls

Hannah and Chloe

This little girl has grown up overnight it seems like... where did my baby go?

Some things haven't changed though... she still likes to eat the sand!!

fun with Uncle Curt

an afternoon at Samford

Our last day in Birmingham was absolutely gorgeous and we spent the majority of the day outside enjoying the sunshine and warmer weather.  We all (with the exception of Woody) met up at Samford that afternoon for some fun outside and picture taking of course.

Okay, so this shot isn't from SU, but Nonie was able to take part of the day off so we headed to the park!

Aunt Hannah getting some Chloe time... and helping me out! :)

sweet Kai... gotta love that smile!

Nonie and Dagan with their grands

I had to get a pic with the girls on the grounds of my alma mater...Arden was enthralled with Mr. Beeson.  She kept going over and sitting in his lap and talking to him-hilarious!

a trip to the zoo

One of our Saturdays in town, Arden and I were able to take a quick trip to the zoo with Hannah and Kai.  (I had hoped Esther was up for the trip, but she put herself to bed that morning around 10:30 and slept most of the day!)  It was a lot of fun having the one-on-one time with Arden and since it was just the two of us, we were able to really enjoy the time spent with Kai and Hannah.

cousins

thrilled to ride the tiger on the carousel

the realization they both couldn't fit!

more march

Here are some more shots from our time in Alabama...

Enjoying some ice cream with the Hunter boys.

Heather with Ty and Chloe, quite the cute couple :)

Getting a night out with the girls.  I love these ladies.  

Random picture of Chloe, but I couldn't resist...she held this thing in her mouth for what seemed like at least 5 minutes!

You know Arden is sick or completely exhausted when she falls asleep in the middle of the day...it happened several times.

Baking cookies with Nonie...Esther loves her some sprinkles! 

march

March was an unusual month for our family.  Woody's work took us to Alabama for the majority of the month.  Although we ended up being sick with bad colds for most of our time there, we were able to get out on a few occasions and enjoy family and friends.  This is the first of probably a few posts of our time away from home.

Arden on her new princess scooter...a belated birthday present. (By the way, this was one of maybe two or three days that it wasn't freezing.  I didn't realize how much I'd gotten accustomed to warm weather!)

Scoping out the park and getting ready to ride.

Our first weekend in town, Christi flew in for a reunion with friends. It was really fun being in the same place for a couple of days and getting to hang out together-an extra special treat!

 

Arden really bonded with her great Grands.  Almost everyday while E and C were napping, she would ask to go spend time with them. 

Arden and Great Granddad putting a puzzle together.

Being pampered by Great Grandmom...Arden sipping on juice after having her fingernails and toenails painted!

Arden wasn't the only one pampered.  Grandmom spoiled me by keeping the girls several times each week so that I could get out and run errands alone!  Thank you so much!

mm mm mama

I think I have an early reader on my hands.  Arden has taken talking 
all
day
long 
to a new level the last couple of weeks.  She has started recognizing (or at least just started verbalizing the recognition) the beginning sounds/letters of words and telling me in the midst of EVERY conversation that we have.  If she doesn't know the beginning letter, then she asks me, which then turns into finding out how the whole word is spelled.  This has turned into her learning/memorizing how some words are spelled.  As it turns out, she's also beginning to learn blends.  And something new she's doing, that I'm assuming is maybe a 4 year old thing or preschooler age in general, is saying my name before EVERYTHING she tells me.  I never thought I would hear my name so many times in one conversation!!  So here are some recent examples as best as I could remember them of Arden's side of a conversation...


Late the other night when she should've been sleeping...   "Mama, I'm going to help you fold the laundry.  Mama, ti ti towel starts with t.  Mama, p(ah) p(ah) pants starts with p.  Mama, I think when we're done folding clothes, I'll go get back in bed.  Mama, these are the girls' clothes.  Mama, ji ji jammies starts with j."

What I remember from in the car today...    "Mama, park starts with p.  Mama, sss sss slide starts with s.  Mama, can we go to the (farmer's) market?  Mm mm market starts with m.  Mama, motorcycles don't have pedals, just stands for people to put their feet on.  Motorcycle starts with m.  Ss ss store starts with s.  I'm thinking we could go to the store."

Cleaning her room..."Hey Mama, c(ah) c(ah) closet starts with c.  Chloe starts with c.  What does stroller start with?  Oh, s t.  S t is how stop starts.  What letters come next? Mama, exersaucer starts with e like Esther and Ezra.  Mama, truck starts with t."


And she goes on and on.... I'm trying to enjoy this time as much as possible and not crack too many smiles/laughs or go too crazy! :) 


And lastly, Arden has been able to spell her name for a long time now, but this morning, she took that knowledge a little further using some zoo animals.  "Mama, I spelled my name.  Alligator, rhino, dolphin, elephant, nightingale, Arden!"  


I love this little girl!

Easter celebration 2010

A beautiful afternoon spent with the girls.  I look forward to this each Spring.  Thank you Judith!