For the girls, the highlight was the Betts' boys - Jack (on the far left), Josiah (being hugged by Anna Kate), and Titus.
Here are 4 of the 6 . . .
Our new staff couple - Joe and Jen - have arrived. We're so glad that they are a part of our team. Both graduated from Syracuse University.
You can see the arm on the right side of the picture (her left arm) just kind of hanging out there. She has begun to move it occasionally - like in this picture - but, really, it just rests against her chest, bent at the elbow. We have been praying, and many have joined us, that God would heal her quickly. We believe He is doing just that. Her discomfort seems to be essentially gone.
On Tuesday, we spent the morning with our good friends Myra and Elise. We picked raspberries in Myra's yard. Here are the girls enjoying the fruit . . .
Anna Kate is really enjoying preschool. This week she began swimming lessons on Monday evenings - a little inconvenient but well worth it when we get back in the pool! And she continues with gymnastics on Thursday mornings. This year in gymnastics, we are rounding the corner and really working towards gymnastics and not just basic physical skills. Right now, she is learning to get her legs straight and tight in her handstand, a pull-over on the bar, the beginnings for back walk-overs, basics of vaulting, and more! Oh, it's so fun to see her grasp and strive after new skills. Only time will tell if we have a little gymnast in the making.
She has so much personality these days. She is mostly easy-going and happy, loves chasing her sisters. She loves that squatting position; in fact, that is how she spends most of her time in the bath tub! She is almost running! I really think she might have tried saying "hi" today when she waved at her sisters during lunch. She is "all done" with baby food - no thanks! So, we're working on getting enough food into her tummy! She can eat. Today, she had toast for breakfast, a cereal bar and cheerios for a snack, a whole grilled cheese and applesauce for lunch, more cheerios this afternoon, and a meatball, noodles, avocado and zucchini for dinner! whew!
The girls spent Saturday morning giving Little People animals a bath in the sink. Everyone, including the girls, got very wet. But it was so much fun.
Post-trauma. Poor Lucy. Yesterday morning, our friend Myra came for a visit. The girls were sitting up at the bar having a snack. I couldn't see what happened but Lucy fell off the bar stool she was sitting on. After 40 minutes of crying, I had calmed her down and we were getting ready to play with water in the sink (any interaction with water is a sure way to calm her down). When I picked her up, the crying started again. So, Myra spent the entire day with Anna Kate and Samantha, while Lucy and I spent the day at Urgent Care. It's true - a broken collarbone. Since the body heals itself and Lucy will naturally favor the other arm, there is nothing we do for it, except Tylenol and lots of love.
Samantha will no longer eat baby cereal. She will still eat veggies from a spoon. Look at this face when Daddy gave her more Cheerios! She loves feeding herself - buttered toast, grilled cheese, mac-n-cheese . . . we're working on expanding her diet.
Samantha loves this drawer in the kitchen. Since it is supposed to be "locked" I am really glad it only holds measuring cups, measuring spoons, scoops, etc. Nothing dangerous! I think she considers it her drawer and her things. Every now and then, I open the drawer to find something interesting in it - a refrigerator letter, a toy . . .
She is probably another little chef in the house.
I have some fun videos of her as she learned to walk, and, now as she is walking, but I can't get them to upload. :( She has been walking steadily for a couple of weeks now, and really rarely crawls anymore. I've come around to believing it is a good thing, even though she is only ten months old!
This is Lucy, in her own words, "grumpy."
I can't believe our little girl is off to preschool. She chose her own clothes, shoes, hairband, everything!
