This and that...

We have been making a good effort to start packing up the house, but it seems that as each day passes we don’t get very far. Every time I start to put something into a box, I begin thinking about when I hung it up or when I bought it or how excited the kids were when they opened it…this is going to be a LONG process!

Nate is anxiously waiting for school to be out…he’s counting down on the dry erase board in his room. He’s counting down until our move on the dry erase board in the kitchen. He’s so detailed! He’s so excited to start the new house…I sure hope he understands that we’re not moving there right away! I’m a little anxious for school to be out so that I can spend some more time with the little guy! We’ve been working on our calendar for the summer and have LOTS of fun things planned. Some of these fun adventures are trips to visit my sister, Chicago, the Firefighters Museum, the Wonderlab, and LOTS of nature walks at the park and swimming days! He tells me he has to keep practicing so that he can swim again next year at the high school. My mom is staying with Gabe and Adri on Friday so that Matt and I can go with Nate and his class on a field trip the Indianapolis Zoo. He says he can’t wait to have a “date” with Mom and Dad. Me, either!

Now that the weather has warmed up and the rain decided to leave us for a while, Gabe can’t stay inside. He’s either on the “for weeder,” his bike, or playing on the swing set or in the sandbox. You can’t keep that kid inside when it’s nice outside. It doesn’t matter how menial the errand is, he wants to go along with Daddy. Whether it’s going to Lowes, the hardware

store, Marsh, or the gas station, he refuses to stay behind. Riding in Matt’s car is a must on these outings, as well! Apparently, Daddy told Gabe that when there aren’t any girls in the car, you can put the windows down all the way. When we were in the van this weekend and I put the windows down, I was told that girls aren’t allowed to do that because the wind will mess up my hair! Thanks, Daddy!

Adrianna, it seems, has grown up so much in the last few days. She finds any shoes she can and tries to put them on her feet, although she’s not walking yet. She can stand without help or holding on, but wants nothing to do with taking steps on her own. When we sing the ‘clean up’ song, she quickly joins in and helps putting things away. I must note that they never get put back where they’re supposed to go…she just finds the nearest box, bin, or empty container and starts filling it! She’s frequently using words like “Gaaayyy,” for Gabe and “Naaaaayyy,” for Nate. She also says, “Daaaad,” and “Duh,” for done. She’s a pro at signing ‘done,’ ‘more,’ and ‘thank you.’ Most of the time when she talks, she yells! The only word she says in a quiet voice is mom. I’m sure that will change! She also calls the dog, “Key,” and likes to tell us the sound a cow makes, when asked. Her favorite toy, by far, is the Little People farm, which is where she learned her “MOOOO.” Now, instead of giving kisses with an open mouth, she puckers a little and Nate was so glad that he was the first one that got to experience a “dry kiss from Adrianna,” he said. I can’t believe her birthday is in 3 weeks!

Nate is always to eager to help Adrianna with whatever she needs. He's always offering to feed her or get her a drink. There have been a few times that she has cried when he left for school and she is so giddy when he gets off the bus!

I can tell she's feeling a lot better because she's so much more joyful to be around. She's content a lot of the time to play on the floor instead of insisting that I carry her around all day!

It really doesn't matter to Gabe that he's too big for this firetruck. He got it for Christmas when he was 1 and he still drives it around!