Getting back at it...

YES, we are still here, getting back on our feet. Exciting times are upon us here in Portland. Nyla started her new preschool, which she attends 4 mornings a week and so far loves. Callie wakes up every morning smiling and talking and cooing and gooing. Sometimes she is so filled with joy that she has to wake up at 3 AM to tell us about it. The girls adore each other, and we adore them. Nyla's sense of style continues to develop, as does her vocabulary (new favorite: fableous - i.e. look at this fableous outfit!). She also loves to come with new names for Callie. Some of our favorites have been, Kit Kat Callie, Callie Pallie Spagallie, Callie-pillar, and very often Sallie. Here are a few pictures of our Punky B and Kit Cat C from the last few months.

Sitting up!

Nyla and her two babies.

Nyla struts to her last swim class of the summer.

Fun with Uncle D.

In Loving Memory

Things have been tough around our house lately, not that we haven't had an abundance of blessings as well. Our much loved Papa passed away on July 3, 2008. He was remarkably courageous and positive throughout the whole ordeal. He recounted daily all the reasons he was lucky and his sense of humor never failed, despite the bleak diagnosis of metastatic cancer. He did not complain. Nyla was his great joy and he was, in his gentle way, becoming acquainted with Callie. He passed at home with us, shortly after we all said goodnight and Nyla told him that each of us loved him. We miss him terribly.

May Day

Happy May Day!

A guest appearance from afar...

No time to type

Super Dad

Callie Arrives

Getting Ready for Baby

In preparation for the upcoming arrival of Baby, we pulled out a few old boxes of clothes from when Nyla was a baby. She, of course, had to try on all the clothes we pulled out.

Oh sure, NOW she wants to use the pacifiers...

Making Dada look pretty...



Just being Nyla...

More fun...

First trip to the roller rink!

Trip to the snow

New Year's Eve

Nyla partying with friends...

Happy New Year

This was the scene of how we spent our last day of 2007. We were having friends over that night to celebrate New Year's Eve and I was so pleased with our sweet girl and how quietly she was playing in her room. While she played I cleaned and talked on the phone uninterrupted for at least 15-20 minutes. I thought about how far we had come from the days of her needing constant attention. And then she emerged from her room with some signs of foul play.

Inside, this is what I found...

It seems little Nyla found some baby powder and decided to make a special concoction with it. After a few deep breaths I remembered hearing that baby powder was good for getting the squeaks out of wood floors. So, we cleaned it up to the best of our ability, and continued to do so for several days.

The best part was she managed to put the baby powder right back where she found it, so as not to make a mess. : )