Family Update: February

Our sister-in-law Mindi had the brilliant idea to do a once-a-month family update on their blog, and I LOVED that idea, so I'm stealing it. So, here's what's been happening with us this past month:

Bethany--is getting stronger everyday, and is now holding herself up pretty well while sitting, standing, and doing tummy time. She's also just started rolling onto her side. She has recently found her hands, and LOVES to put them in her mouth and talk while she does so (num-num-num!). She also loves to watch us with her wide blue eyes and talk to us while we eat, and is cooing more other times as well (so we're thinkin' she's getting close to being ready for "table food"). She's been a great sleeper (only waking up once a night to eat), and is generally a good napper during the day as well. Her other likes are to hold hands, read books, look at bubbles, watch her big sister, and be rocked to sleep. She's our sweet, happy baby and we love squeezing and holding her and just having her around.

Grace--loves to play with her playdough, and especially now that she just earned a playdough tool set (by helping Jenny around the house with dishes and setting the table; we were SO proud of her for her hard work and patience in earning it!). Her favorite TV shows these days are Signing Time, Curious George, and Word World. She also enjoys reading and is starting to be able to pick out sight words (like "the" and "and") when we read, as well as spell simple words with her magnet letters (like "log" and "bus"). A new favorite activity of hers is playing in the water in the sink, and she is looking forward to Spring so she can play in her water table outside again. Another new activity of hers is playing with the nativity set that we've left out from Christmas; she daily asks me to tell her the Christmas story as we look at the different figurines (and has added raisins in to the Christmas story; apparently the wise men like to eat them on their journey ;).). Another still is getting piggy back rides from mom and dad, which she asks for daily. She continues to love to sing, and can often be found singing "Book of Mormon Stories," "I belong to the Church of Jesus Christ," and "Paradise" by Coldplay (interesting selection, I know). And of course, she loves to talk to Bethany, hold her hand, and give her kisses (telling her what a "precious tiny baby" she is :) ). We sure love our sweet, helpful Grace girl.

Jenny--mostly stays busy watching the girls, but makes time to do a weekly Zumba class with some other girls from her Ward, go out with friends on "girls nights", and do lots of reading (for fun and personal enrichment). If only there were more hours in a day, right?!

Travis--just finished his 3rd year of Podiatry school this month (hooray for no more test weeks--ever!), and has thus also started his 4th year (which is the year of his externships). He also just signed up for a 50K race in May and is excited to get going on his training for that.

Life is busy, but good, and we're looking forward to the adventures this year will bring!

New Posts!

Keep scrolling down to see our latest posts:
*Snow Fun!
*Bethany Lovin'
*Best friends are we, my sister & me
*Thanksgiving & Pre-Christmas Fun
*Texas Trip Part 6: Museum Day
*Texas Trip Part 5: Christmas
Enjoy!

Snow Fun!

We've gotten a couple good snowfalls this past week in Cleveland, and since Grace hadn't really been out to play in it yet this winter (probably since she never asked, and I never offered--snow me no likey), we dressed her up and let her run-a-muck!
Getting all suited up:


Travis went out to shovel one night and Grace begged to go out and help him, the cutie. :) So we got out her sand shovel and out she went!
Our hard workers (gotta start em young, ya know! ;) ):


They had a blast!


A couple days after they shoveled, we got another good snowfall (if you can consider snowfall good). I had promised Grace all the next day that after dad got home, he could take her sledding in the backyard for a little bit. She was SO excited. Well, Travis got home around dinner time, so after her bath, we got Grace dressed in her snow gear, but all throughout dressing her, she kept talking about her shovel. Confused, Travis explained to her that she didn't need her shovel, that they weren't shoveling the driveway like they did the other night, and that tonight, they were just going to go sledding. To this, Grace happily exclaimed: "Oh! Hooray! That would be really, really perfect!" Travis and I laughed so hard!
Off to the backyard they went, where Grace proceeded to squeal in delight while Travis pulled her in figure 8's around the backyard.
You can just see the joy in her face:

After she was done sledding, she played on the slides a little bit too (cuz why not!?).

They had "snow" much fun in the snow!

Grace & Bethany

Just wanted to share a few videos of our cute girls that I took recently. Enjoy!

Travis taught Grace "Jingle Bells" this Christmas season, and she fell in love with it & loves singing it, so here's a video of her doing just that (from December 14th):

Bethany recently started cooing (which we love, and which she loves to do when we're talking to her or while she's having tummy time), so here are a couple videos of her sweet coos (taken December 5th):

Best friends are we, my sister & me

We decided to have a little fun and do a "sisters" photoshoot today. (Grace loves to do this, and will even jump on the couch with Bethany and say "Mom take a picture!" from time to time). Enjoy!


Travis & Grace trying to get Bethany to smile:

These two love each other so much, and we love them!

Bethany Lovin'

In the past few weeks, Bethany has hit the stage where she's started smiling a lot. We LOVE it!

This is how we got her to smile at first (tickling either side of her mouth):


Now, we can usually get her to smile just by smiling at her or talking to her in a high-pitched voice.
Here are some of her sweet smiles:





I love how they just fill up her face, and how her eyes curve into crescent moon shapes when she does. I mean, seriously, how could you not love that face? ;)

And since this is too funny not to share...
Grace loves to give Bethany hugs.
Here is Bethany's typical reaction:

:) It's always a little much, but Bethany sure loves her big sister.

And we sure love our Bethany!

Christmas Letter 2011

Dear Family and Friends,

2011 was a wonderful year for us, and especially so since it was the year we welcomed our daughter, Bethany Adelle, into our family.

Bethany, born on November 8th, is our "angel baby." Very sweet and mild tempered, she loves to watch her big sister and be cuddled by mom and dad, and has just started to really smile and coo (though I swear she began smiling the day she was born). She is a sweet, calming presence in our home, and we're so grateful to have her as a part of our family.

Grace, now 2 1/2, loves her little sister, who she talks to in a high baby voice, saying things like "Hi, sweetheart!" or "Hi, wakies!", gives lots of hugs and kisses to, and makes sure that she's taken care of by mom and dad, with directions to us like "Mommy feed her!" or "Daddy rock her!" Grace also loves to color (which she does several times a day); watch Signing Time and Curious George; play with her cars, Little People, and grocery cart; sing songs; read books; play the piano; and go to the park and zoo; and has just entered the "why?/question" stage. She never ceases to make us laugh, is too smart for any of our goods, and is a delight to watch as a big sister.

This year was full of new experiences for Jenny. First and foremost, being a mother of two, which she finds both a little challenging and very rewarding. Also, she started running (she competed in a 5k in February) and doing Zumba dance (which she loves, and is now considering becoming an instructor in someday). She also began a formal study of photography, and hopes to continually improve herself in that area. Jenny continues to serve as a compassionate service leader in her ward (with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints), and to enjoy reading and spending time with her family and friends.

This past year also held new things for Travis. He began his 3rd year of Podiatry school in July, and has since participated in weekly clinic experiences at various clinics and hospitals in the area. He enjoys the practical experience he gets at clinic, as well as seeing new cases and procedures. He also began the exciting new hobby of ultra-marathon running. After several months of training, he competed in his first ultra-marathon in June, a 50 mile race, which he ran in just under 13 hours; and in September, he ran his second race, a 50k (or 31 miles), which he ran in about 6 hours. He LOVES distance running, and is always on the lookout for a new race to run and a chance to run on the trails. Travis continues to work with the young men in our ward, though now as the Young Men's President, and enjoys the time he gets to spend with them. In his free time, Travis enjoys running, baking, and spending time with his family.

Looking back over this past year, we feel so blessed, and hope that you and your's have been blessed too. We also hope you had a wonderful Christmas and holiday season, and that you'll now enjoy a blessed New Year.

With love,

Travis, Jenny, Grace, and Bethany