Compare and Contrast

Kari had her 4-month check up yesterday. She's right on track and we're very fortunate that she continues to be such a happy and healthy baby! As I was thinking back, I was curious how the other two compared at her age and so I searched the photo archives of our computer and came up with these shots of Emily and Christian at right around 4 months old. My, how time flies!

Emily, in an outfit that Kari just wore a couple of weeks ago! She weighed in at 15 lbs 9 oz and was 25 inches long.

Christian, my chunkers, tipped the scales at 18 lbs, 1 oz and was 25 1/2 inches long at 4 months.

And, here's sweet little Kari, weighing in at 15 lbs, 4 oz and is 26 inches long. This past month she's been through 2 growth spurts and has begun putting everything in her mouth as well. She's also starting to twist back and forth and is so close to flipping all the way over onto her tummy. Most nights she only gets up once and during the day she'll usually stay awake for 1 1/2-2 hrs before getting tired and needing to go down for a nap. Her smile and giggle are just to DIE for and she's even getting better about her car seat! (I think the fact that her vision has cleared up has something to do with that.) There are challenging days (and nights) but we're adjusting and I even was very brave (for me) and took all three kids to the zoo by myself this week! Kari is a joy to have in our family and I can't wait to see how she'll look as she gets grows!

Watch Me Grow!

Last Saturday was Emily's dance recital. The dance studio we take her to (Mary Lorraine's Dance Company) holds separate shows for the "little guys"--it was only about 45 min long and so much fun to watch. She was the first number--a little flower! It was so darling! Emily has really improved this last year and the one that many of other dancers looked to during the recital to see what part of the dance they should be doing. She was all smiles on-stage and we all enjoyed giving all of the little dancers a big round of applause when they finished!

Here are a couple of the little teacher gifts that we gave to a few of the kids' teachers this year. Pretty simple, but still cute. The green popsicle sticks (stems) say "Thank you for helping me grow!" We have had some really wonderful teachers this year and hopefully as they look at their little flowers, they'll remember that they had a part in helping my children to grow.

"Ketchup" time

Okay, so here I go with just a little bit of "ketchup"--a bit of catch up on some pictures I want included in the blog. The first is noteworthy b/c Emily waited all year for it: BLUE DAY. Yup, a day where everyone dressed all in blue. Every other color had been done and the much-anticipated blue day finally arrived. She loved wearing all of her favorite blue clothes. If I let her, she'd wear this outfit (or a variation of it w/other blue-like apparel) everyday.

Next up: Two Wednesdays ago we had our annual activity with the Youth where we go and plant flowers up at the Temple. Emily was more into walking around the grounds and touring the visitor's center (the Sister Missionaries just couldn't get enough of her!). Christian, however, has a bit of a green thumb and really liked the planting part. It was really fun! We also got to hang out with some of our favorite babysitters, Katie and Addie, who are two of "my" Mia Maids (14 and 15 yr olds for those who are not well-versed in Mormon-lingo :-) ). The weather was great and so it was a very pleasant evening!

Finally, Cubby and I got to celebrate our 8-year anniversary! It's been a busy eight years--3 degrees (2 BAs, 1 JD), 4 moves, and 3 kiddos! It's been wonderful though and I'm just so thankful to have married a man who loves me despite my many shortcomings and who is such an amazing father and friend.

We got to go out to a FANTASTIC burger place (seriously, this place has the BEST burgers we've EVER had). It's a place in Bellevue called "Stella's" and it's been a favorite of the military guys for decades. The burgers came out within minutes of us ordering--crumbly beef (hand-packed and everything) and steaming hot. The bacon on Cubby's burger was a quarter of an inch thick--he was pracitically giddy about it. If you're in the area, I'd highly recommend it. We then got to go out and shop a bit w/some gift certificates that Cubby had gotten for his birthday. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was us out together. Happy Anniversary, honey! I love you!

Preschool Graduation

Well, we've been really busy and so the blog has taken a hit! We've had some bad colds, an anniversary (Happy 8th, Honey!), lots' of rain, planting flowers at the Temple, and, this past Thursday, Emily's preschool graduation! It was such a fun night full of songs and some tears as a wonderful year is coming to a close.

Last fall, I debated whether or not to put Emily in 5 morning/week preschool, in part b/c of the extra driving involved (and with a baby coming) and also b/c I was afraid that Christian would just miss her too much! However, it all worked out and I am just so thankful that we did go with the 5 day/week class. It was just what she needed and it's just amazing to see how much she's learned over the school year.

Emily's teacher, Ms. Karin (pronounced Kay-rin) is just an absolute sweeheart and really loves the kids. She is wonderful and has really set the bar pretty high in the teacher category for Emily! Emily seriously LOVES her and makes her a new picture or craft almost every day! It's just so cute to see how much all of the kids love her!

Here are some of the highlights from the evening:Doing the "Months of the Year" song--they all jumped up for May!

"Chewy-Bubble Gum" song

Emily won the "What's Next" award--she's always asking "So, Ms. Karin, what's next?" Such classic "Emily"!

Kari was pretty excited for Emily as well--she slept on Cubby the whole time but woke up for refreshments :-)

The kiddos--Emily and Kari were "twins"--loooove it!

Me and my little Graduate!

Way to go, Emily! I can't believe your preschool days are over! (Sniff, sniff!) On to Kindergarten!

A Delightful Recipe!

This chicken recipe comes from my sister's close friend who passed away last year. It is simple and fantastic--I hope you'll try it!

You'll need:
1/2 c. 7-up
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/4 tsp garlic powder (or fresh garlic clove, minced)
1/4 tsp horse radish (optional)
1-3 lbs chicken breasts (can slice thinly if you want the "full-effect" of the marinade)

What to do:
Combine all ingredients and marinate chicken overnight in an airtight container. Grill up the next day and enjoy!