Lately

When the weather decides it really is Spring, we spend time outside at parks, playing with water, riding bikes, doing chalk, and petting neighbor's dogs.

A few weeks ago, we had a fun family morning taking the kids on a surprise adventure to see "The Croods".  Lydia enjoyed half the movie and spent the other half practicing her walking skills.  Actually she got a new record in the lobby of 39 steps so that was fun!  Roy got lots of cuddle and laugh time with Abby and Sam.

We spent a windy morning at the Eagle Festival, which was like a small town fair.  We did see a couple eagles waaaay up in the sky.  Abby's favorite bird is an eagle.  We also saw a really cool reptile show that Sam enjoys reenacting.

On this most recent weekend, we got to see this lady:

(Roy's sister, Alex, who was in town for a weekend Conference put on by BYU)

Thank goodness for iPhones!  Lydia let me sit and listen for 20 minutes.  Sure, I missed Alex's speech, but what I did hear was actually super interesting.  She and I got lost in NW DC instead...good thing streets are in alphabetical and numerical order :)

It is always so fun to see Alex and it was really fun to see her play with our kids!

LOVE

I love these faces!

Text-Worthy

I have this on-going list in my email inbox of funny kid moments that I text myself because they should be included on our blog.  This is one of those clean out my inbox and update the blog times!  Enjoy!

• Lydia's hair is long enough for wearing a little clip!  She won't keep it in for more than a minute, but it sure looks cute!  Her hair also goes crazy while sliding.

•  Sam was really missing Grandma and asked where she was.  I responded that she was at work.  His next very important question: "Is she getting money?"
• On a similar note, Abby was recently requesting a $40 Lego set.  We talked about how that is a lot of money so she would probably need to wait until Christmas or save her allowance to buy it herself.  She thought for only a few seconds before matter-of-factly saying, "I'll just ask Grandma and Baba.  They love to spoil me."
• A lot of times, the kids and I joke by calling two of their toys, vitamins, toothbrushes, blankets (or anything that will seem silly and make them laugh), "Best Friends!"  But that is exactly what I think when I see things like this.  

I may not have mentioned this in a previous post, but when the pediatrician asked Sam who his best friend was, he didn't hesitate to answer, "Abby!"  I almost cried with happiness.

• Last night Sam was running past Lydia and I sitting on the floor.  He tripped and fell.  Lydia started laughing really hard.  My first thought was that she is a true sibling, laughing at her brother falling.
• Lydia is really enjoying her Easter candy.  Can you see the remnants of blue egg?

• Sam has been really interested in super heroes lately, particularly in trying to figure out who belongs in the columns of Bad Guys vs. Good Guys.  He was recently dressed up in an odd assortment of costume pieces and said in a low, gravelly voice, "I am Captain Hook America!"
• Sam is really growing up fast and likes to be as independent as I will let him be.  It often results in moments when I have to hold back my laughter so he doesn't feel bad. :)  The other night he refused to put his pj shirt on and walked around with Steve Urkel style pants chanting "Savages, savages!"  (He watched "Pocahontas" a long time ago and was inspired by the men's lack of shirts).  

• The reason we took this picture is because the girls were in matching skirts and shirts.  Of course you can't tell this from the picture though. :)  I have been so excited for my girls to match (especially because I know the amount of time they will want to match will be short)!

Do you ever have those simple, yet overwhelming feelings of "Best Mom EVER!" because your kids are getting along really well, spontaneously give you a hug and kiss, get excited because you let them watch a show while they eat snack, plan a surprise adventure, or want to cuddle up to you and whisper how much they love you?  I love those moments.

Look at Lydia!

We are really excited about this new-found interest.  She is the cutest!

Easter Weekend

We spent Easter weekend in Williamsburg with Grandma and Baba Z and the Virginia cousins.  It was a lot of fun.  The worst part of the trip was the drive to and from our house...remind me not to go long distance on a long weekend again.  The kids were excellent on the drive, which was a huge answer to many prayers.  It was just that every other car in northern VA decided it was prime time to be on the roads.  

Roy was in San Diego and St. George for a week so I was a solo mom.  It was nice to celebrate Easter, Lydia's birthday round 2 and my birthday round 2 with family.  For Lydia's birthday celebration, we read one of her favorite books ("We're Going on a Bear Hunt") with the cousins, opened presents, ate pink lemonade cupcakes, and built Legos.

 The only unusual part of our very traditional Easter day was attempting to let Roy watch via Google Video Chat.  When the kids were still and in front of the computer, it worked out well. :)  The kids loved the baskets, Easter egg hunt, and getting all dressed up (okay, well, Abby loved the dressing up part).

What on earth is Abby doing? :) 

 The Zwahlen females present, minus Grandma Z.

Do you see Lydia sucking her thumb?  I adore it!

A Little of This and That

Do you see the Kindle on Sam's lap?  The Kindle is magic.  Sam can be tired, in a bad mood, feeling especially destructive or "loving" to Lydia (which really means he is very eager to help her move quickly around the house...scary!), or just need a break and the Kindle comes out and he's suddenly feeling happy, excited, and ready to play.  We've had to find a delicate balance so he has a chance to play for a little while each day and only for short snatches of time or else we all regret that it was even purchased in the first place.    He's really impressed me with his willingness to listen when I tell him it's time to turn it off.  Very rarely do we have a fight about it...following through with taking it away for the rest of the day when he hasn't been so compliant has definitely worked in my favor.  All three kids love the Kindle.  Every once in a while I find them all squished in the tiniest spaces, all leaning over the screen.  I'm so grateful we have kids who are such good friends!

Roy has traveled quite a bit recently and, in an attempt to be a cool mom who also needs to have exciting days, I planned a few fun outings.  Here are the kids at their favorite park, which has a path around a little lake.  We love walking around and trying to spot the animals in the water.

I missed putting this in Sam's birthday post.  He wanted brownies to celebrate and couldn't wait to help me stir them up.  I don't know if he was more excited about the mixing process or the obligatory spoon-licking after we were done. :)

Way back in February, I took the kids to a production of Rodger's and Hammerstein's "Cinderella" at one of the high schools.  It was phenomenal!  We still sing the songs pretty much every day.  All three kids loved it for different reasons.  I think it was especially inspiring to Abby.  She has been a lot more creative in retelling stories, combining stories, and coming up with ideas about new elements to the story.  I love that this musical opened her eyes to the fact that there's not just one way to tell a story.  She's such a singer anyway and has sung more since we saw "Cinderella".  Seeing "Cinderella" was one of those unexpected favorite moments of our winter.

Lydia is 1!

This year went by so quickly!  Our sweet Lydia is 1.  I'm not sure even how to describe my feelings as I look at this angel baby who made such a smooth transition into our family and who has made such a great impact on our lives.  Lydia is a calm, happy presence, more than you normally feel around a baby.  I might be feeling grumpy or tired, but this girl does something funny or finds pleasure in something and I am reinvigorated.  Lydia loves people.  She acts shy around people not in our immediate family, but once she understands that they are okay, she loves them for life.  Lydia loves giving kisses and hugs, calling for Abby ("ABa!" yelled in a big voice) and laughing at Sam (whom she is learning to call "Am!"), and talking on the phone.  Whenever she sees a toy or real phone come out, she's screaming "Hello!"  She usually talks to Dada on the phone (he's been gone a lot recently so there have been lots of phone calls).  Lydia has a great sense of humor, loves reading "We're Going on a Bear Hunt", and playing with her babies and bear (and she calls them baby and bear-bear...I love when communication happens!).  We love you, Lydia Jane, and are so very grateful for you being in our family!

Classic shot of falling asleep in the high chair.

Okay, go ahead and turn your head 90 degrees to enjoy the next few pictures.  :)  We misplaced the actual camera cable so we can only get read-only pictures.  Enjoy smiles from my favorite baby!

Abby was so excited for Lydia's birthday.  For weeks before the big day, Abby planned and decorated and prepared.  On the morning of Lydia's birthday, Abby had Lydia unwrap the costume she is wearing in the picture above.  It's one of Abby's dress-ups that hasn't fit for a long time, but she loves it.  She even decorated it with extra ribbon and necklaces.  It's going to be so fun to see these two sisters build their friendship!

Here's Lydia opening her presents.  It's not super exciting unless you're family or love watching 1-year-olds attempt to beat siblings in opening gifts.  Spoiler alert: Abby and Sam are much faster than Lydia. :)