Springtime

I can't say we won't get another snow storm yet this month, but it sure is feeling like spring outside lately!  Here is a little update on the girls and what they've been up to lately.

Lydia:
-Loves to sing (although rarely for an audience). Her favorite songs to sing include "I Will Make You Fishers of Men", "Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes", the alphabet, and a few songs from the weekly music class we attend.
-She is starting to see Clara as more of a playmate, and I am finding them playing together more often.  Lydia definitely is in charge of whatever they are doing and Clara gets bossed around a fair bit, despite our frequent reminders to "talk sweetly" and "treat Clara with kindness".
-Thanks to the alphabet train puzzle she received at Christmas from her grandparents, Lydia is able to recognize all the letters and can put the train together with prompts for which letter to look for next.
-She enjoys going to Little Lambs (it is just as adorable as it sounds).  This is a little class of 2-3 year olds that do craft, play time and singing together each week on Wednesday mornings while the moms have Bible study.

Clara:
-Shows increasing interest in books.
-LOVES being outside, and goes into a fit of tears and laying on the floor whenever it's time to go back in the house.  She is a big fan of swinging, and will giggle whenever she gets a big push from her daddy :)
-Clara is one to show her emotions very quickly and openly.  We rarely have to wonder how she feels about something.  She is quick to smile and giggle, but also quick to cry about something that upsets her.

Adoption Update:
-We have the pre-application packet in hand and are hoping to get that completed (along with getting several documents notarized) in the next few weeks.
-It is our prayer that God will provide for us during this whole process; that he will provide wisdom, courage, and patience as we take our first small steps on this journey.

Annual baking day!

Reading with Grandma!

Coloring with the big girls :)

This picture just makes me smile...they have the sweetest relationship :)

Those uncles are the pits!

Reading with Grandpa!

A good shot of some eagles hanging out by our place this winter.

The alphabet train.

This is a common scene at our house!

One day Dan left home with the Taurus...

...and came home with a van!  We are loving it!

Chips are meant to be shared.

This young hawk flew tried to fly through one of our windows!  It knocked him out for a few minutes then he regained his senses and flew off.

A good picture to end on.  Their relationship can be rocky at times, but it is so fun watching these two grow together as sisters :)

Rich Days

Here is our little update from the past 6ish weeks of our lives. The biggest development at our house is that Lydia is potty trained!  She caught on quite quickly, and now we go everywhere in "big girl panties"...to the grocery store, to Bible study, to church, etc. Another big accomplishment for Lydia is that she is sitting with us in church.  Both of our girls are "nursery girls" and love playing with all the toys and other kids during church.  Recently Lydia seemed to be enjoying sit-down activities more at home, and is even content with a pen and paper.  So we decided to give church a try, and it has been going really well.  Clara did not seem to mind Lydia's absence in the nursery, so that's a plus too :)

At 2 years and 4 months Lydia has turned into quite the little helper around the house.  She bring me things I need and delivers laundry to the right rooms (ok...just socks and underwear, because nothing else would stay folded if she delivered it).  Washing dishes and helping me bake/cook are also things that she enjoys participating in, especially if the recipe calls for chocolate chips or M&M's :)

At 13 months Clara is cruising around pushing her little walker, but she is not walking on her own yet.  She continues to have a very sweet and tender personality, especially when we must speak firmly to her or enforce any sort of discipline.  She loves bath time, snuggles, music, books and chasing Lydia around the house.  Some of her favorite foods are bananas and pasta, but she is not a fan of any sort of meat.

In October Dan and I enjoyed going to an all-day Adoption Conference in Des Moines.  This was a great learning experience for us, and it was very encouraging to us as we look forward to this adventure in the upcoming years.  More on this to come :)  We look forward to sharing our journey with you and talking to each of you in person about our plan to adopt.

Sweet sisters...

Time for play-doh!

We did it!

It's just hard to wake up some mornings.

Giddy-up!

Photo shoot with Clara...who was not feeling the greatest :(

Lots of beautiful sunrises and sunset lately! Lydia says, "pretty sky!"

Watch the progression to see a dad who is a boy at heart :)

Reading with Grandpa...

...and Grandma!

My little "helper".

At this point most of her "help" actually creates more work, but I'm hoping she will actually be helpful very soon!

Sweet September

Our little family had a great September!  We had a fun weekend with Jason and Abby, and we went to a Hawkeye game with them on Saturday.  The girls enjoyed some sweet bonding with their aunt and uncle :)  I thought I had a picture of Jason and Lydia playing with her Dora doll house, but I can't find it...but just so you all know, it happened and it was so precious!

Clara's birthday was on the 24th, and Dan's parents came down to visit for the weekend.  We also took some family pictures with our 1 year old and 2 year old :)  Many of you probably saw these pictures on facebook, at least the good ones.  Here I have posted some that aren't really Christmas card worthy, but are fun to look at because you can really see our girls' personalities shine through!

Go Hawks!

Not sure how these 2 convinced me that walking 4.2 miles back to our car was a good idea.  At least we beat the train! ;)

L.O.V.E.

Drone picture of our yard.

Happy birthday to Clara!

Time for birthday cake!

And the fun begins!

Looking for a more efficient way to eat her cake...her hands were just too slow!

Evening ride.

Next year Lydia will probably be mowing alone!

For one this is hilarious, for the other it is serious work.

She is known for having that mischievous twinkle in her eye.

Sweet baby girl!

The entertainment was not always very funny to Lydia.

Shoe problems for Lydia and kisses from Clara :)

Clara is trying to wave somebody down while Lydia's shoe problems persist.

Having a little talk about not sticking tongues out on family pictures.

Clara seems to be doing some interpretive dance while Lydia's pigtail gets Dan in the eye.

This was not fun for anybody.

Ok, let's throw in the towel on this pose.

A moment of peace...

We have to end on a good one, right?!