Zoo Day

We went with some family to the zoo today. We went early in the morning so it was nice and cool- well, okay not cool per say but not sweltering either. Here is Jane and Kylie in the stroller. My aunt Donna bought all of the kids cute zoo hats.

This is my cousin Kody and Jill.

Jay might have been going a little delirious by the time we left MOLA...

Jane has a lot of her dad in her...

This is my cousin Kara, cutie!

Everyone was playing around in the water in Texas Town. Jane didn't want to go through it at first because she didn't want to get her dress wet but once she saw Kylie and Jill playing in it miss priss decided to give it a try. She is there on the left of Jay and Jill and Kerri are on the right.

Here is Kerri on the train.

Kylie, Jane and Kara

Poor Jay had to sit by himself.

We had a fantastic time!! It really was a great zoo day and funny enough even though I have been to the zoo many times I saw parts of it today that I haven't seen before- has anyone else been way up past Texas town to the foxes and the otters? And I realized that every time I go to the zoo I see something new. Is it really that big?

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to the best father I know! Here he is with our three girls.

Another of our favorite dad's is affectionately known as "Pawpaw". Here he is with all of his grandchildren.

These adorable shirts were made by my friend, Kristy.

Happy Father's Day everyone!

Two Months Old

Our sweet baby Jena is two months old. She has changed our hearts and our lives forever and our family has grown both in size and in love since she has arrived.

Jill can't get enough of her...

Jill will say in her baby voice "it's okaaaaaay" and pat Jena's head when she cries. She now calls her "Nena" instead of baby or sometimes she will say "baby Nena". She constantly wants to kiss her and pick her up. So we have to constantly be aware of where Jill is because she is looking for any opportunity to do so.

Jane, the professional big sister, has been amazing. She asks to hold Jena daily and though I was concerned at first I have discovered that she can actually be a great help. In addition to getting things like diapers and burp rags, Jane also will hold Jena and rock her and sing to her while I pack our bags to get ready to go somewhere. Also, Jane can make Jena smile faster and bigger than anyone else. Jena will light up at the sound of Jane's voice. They have some kind of special bond. Maybe it comes from having the same letters in their name or from how Jena favors Jane.

At two months Jena is happy, except when she's not ;). She is cuddly. She likes to be held tight, I mean TIGHT! She likes to be upright, mostly I think because she is dealing with acid reflux. She is strong! She can sit up at more than a 45 degree angle and is always working on her "baby sit ups". She likes the swing and the bouncer but mostly she just wants to be held. She likes music and as I said the sound of Jane's voice. My voice is a favorite too. She likes her paci (just like Jane did) and is a good nurser like Jill. She loves it when Jay holds her up high like this...

She's had a lot of tests run since she was born. The latest one was a VEP (visual evoked potential) test in which she had electrodes hooked up to her head and a pair of special goggles on that flashed visual stimuli at her (see picture below). She was not a fan! This test is supposed to tell us if the pathways from her eyes to her brain are working. The hardest part in dealing with all of this is waiting to find out what we even have to deal with. We have discovered that test results don't come speedily. We've heard that the results went straight into files without being read, doctors are on vacation or just plain have forgotten to call. I feel blessed that God has entrusted us with the care of Jena and I know with the strong support system we have of family and friends that we can handle whatever is to come but like I said the hardest part so far has been the waiting.

It has been a very quick two months and I fear time only goes faster from here. Jena has already lost her "startle" reflex :( Those of you who have had newborns might recall it. For the time being I am soaking in every second of that baby smell that I can because alas it goes away too fast! We love you Miss Jena! Happy two monthiversary!

My New Favorite Place

Here it is... my new favorite place, Euless Splash Island. I first heard about this place a couple of years ago from my friend Jessica. Though I had driven by I had never actually been to it until this past week at the suggestion of my friend Allison. I LOVED it! The girls loved it too...

It is completely surrounded by a 20 ft. fence all the way around (so theres no worry about the kids running off). There are no pools of water (so theres no worry about drowning). AND it is FREE!!!

We had such a great time on Thursday we decided to go back with a play group on Saturday. I brought along my friend Julie and her son Caleb and we met Erin and Kristy and their children there. We all had a GREAT time!! (If you follow my friend, Erin's blog then you might recognize these pics because they are all hers. -Once again I forgot my camera)

Other than the place being locked when we got there and having to wait for someone to come unlock it, everything was perfect. We had great weather. Kristy brought a big picnic blanket we put in the shade under a big tree. She also brought the kids all buckets which they thoroughly enjoyed...

Erin's daughter, Sophia most especially enjoyed the buckets!

These little redheads are Kristy's kids, Mikey and Adelyn.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAL!!!!!!!

Jane enjoyed Addy.

I did too!

After playing for a few hours at the splash pad we all went home to take a nap. Some of us started before we even left the splash pad...

Interview with an almost four year old

I LOVE these interviews with Jane. From the mouths of babes...

1. What is something mom always says to you?
Jane- love you

2. What makes mom happy?
Jane- If I listen

3. What makes mom sad?
Jane- When I don't listen

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
Jane- When she does silly things

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Jane- a baby

6. How old is your mom?
Jane- I don't know

7. How tall is your mom?
Jane- big (she puts her arms way up)

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Jane- clean

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
Jane- go to work

10.If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Jane- I don't know

11. What is your mom really good at?
Jane- cleaning

12. What is your mom not good at?
Jane- work

13. what does your mom do for a job?
Jane- go to work

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
Jane- pizza

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
Jane- when I clean

16. What do you and your mom do together?
Jane- clean

17. How are you and your mom the same?
Jane- you have the same arms, feet, toes, face and body

18. How are you and your mom different?
Jane- we have different hair. Your hair is black and my hair is yellow.

19. How do you know your mom loves you?
Jane- because you love me because God made you and Daddy and Jill and me.

20. What does your mom like most about your dad?
Jane- He's so... because you and Daddy are married.

I thought it was pretty funny. You would think all I do is clean! I wish my house looked like all I did was cleaned.

Lately

Here's what we've been up to lately (since my last post)...

Catching a nap, when we can

Hanging around

Trying to keep cool

Lastly, we went to get our family pictures taken...