Summer 2011

Summer is almost over and I guess we've been having so much fun that I haven't posted any pictures. So here is a picture recap of the summer.

Portraits

Paul (I can't believe he's almost 3):

Kate (already 15 months old but just barely 1 in this picture):

At the beginning of the summer Kate was just learning to walk, in love with stairs, and insisting on feeding herself:

Now she's a true toddler and loves to climb on everything and get into everything. It's a good thing she's so cute when she does it all:

Mother's Day 2011

This is the best I could get from Paul on a Sunday morning

Hair cut day for the guys:

I need a Hair cut day for Kate:

End of May Chicago trip!

We all had a great time (or at least most of us did)!

Paul enjoying the high life in his Chicago hotel:

Kate on her Birthday!

(and because this is the only place I document her stats here they are: 23lbs and almost 31in tall)

Happy Birthday Kate!

Sharing her first bite of cake:

Happy 4th of July!

What summer means to us:

And of course the Great Minnesota Get Together (aka the State Fair):

Paul was in heaven riding the "Sky Ryder"

And of course Kate only wanted to play in the one place the stroller couldn't go - the stairs

Two and A Half

Paul had his half birthday last week! It was extra fun because Chris had some time off work.

We went to a model train store and Paul spent the entire hour mesmerized by the model trains.

He followed the trains all along the track and provided a little commentary with his non-stop jabbering of "wow" "look at it go" and "here it comes!"

Katiebug, as always, was happy to go along for the ride. She's a good sport.

One of Paul's other favorite places to go is a huge indoor play structure. Can you spot Paul in the picture below?

(hint: he is climbing up to the top...top right that is)

We took Paul to a studio for his 2 and half year old pictures and while I don't have any digital copies of the portraits they took, I did make sure to snap some of my own pictures when we got home. Here are my favorites. I can't get over how much he looks like his dad both in his features and in the way he carries himself. I love it.

In an effort to indoctrinate the kids while they are young, we all dressed up for BYU and the Mountain West Conference finals.

After taking several pictures like the one above, Kate somehow figured out that you are supposed to smile for the camera and this is the face she's come up with :)

And of course whenever Kate get's her picture taken, Paul decides he wants his taken too.

Paul has been successfully trained to chant "Go BYU Go BYU" whenever he sees either the BYU logo or just any old Basketball game. We hope it is indicative of things to come.

9 months

Kate is 9 months old!

She's a healthy 21lbs 2 oz (90%) and 29in tall (90%).

Here are some fun pictures.

My Favorite Picture:

Two bottom teeth!:

Still Snowy (I'm beginning to think it will never melt):

I love watching Kate and Paul together, but I just can't seem to get a good picture of them. This is the best I have so far. Kate really does adore Paul and he loves showing her new things. It is a great combo. Unfortunately Kate is figuring out quicker than ever how to push Paul's buttons. But I guess that is part of the fun too, right?

This one's for Paul. He LOVES trains and on top of that what two year old doesn't love seeing picture of himself?

Here is Kate's first attempt at crawling. I knew she could do it if she just had enough motivation so I cleared off the floor and made a pile of her favorite "toys". She's been at it for about a week now and even though she is still pretty slow, she can get anywhere she wants to go and that makes her happy.