A Few More Words

Joey has added a few more words to his list:

- Round and round (he'll say this when he wants to sing "The Wheels on the Bus" -- and he does the hand motions!)
- Animals (he learned this word while staring at GrandBob's deer and antelope heads - he tried roaring and meowing at them, but was confused that there wasn't any response, so instead he just kept saying "animals" over and over!)
- Down

So much fun!!

Joey's New Words

Joey has started talking! His current vocabulary:

hi, hello, bye, mama, dada, ni-ni (Caroline), Bamp-boo (Grandpa), Bambob (Grandbob), ka-ty (Katie), kitty, meow, doggy, roar (when he sees a picture of a lion), oh-oh-ah-ah (when he sees pictures of monkeys), up, baba (water), MORE!!!!! (usually in the context of asking for more food), NOOOOOO (combined with finger-pointing, much like his sisters say to him), happy, nose, eye, ear, mouth, baby, and (sadly) plie (which he learned while sitting through the girls' ballet classes).

Earlier this week he actually put two words together -- "dada UP!"

Happy Halloween!

Three Little Munchkins

Caroline the Ladybug

Caroline's party at school:Katie the Good Witch of West Linn:

Joey the Monkey and Daddy

Totally Summer... Kilchis Camping!!

What do you call a two-night adventure with 10 kids, 3 adults, 3 visitors, and a vat of spaghetti big enough to feed 100 people? It's a Laidlaw-Porter-Duplessie-Jacobs camping trip, of course! There was a little bit of fishing, swimming, marshmallow-roasting, late-night storytelling (including how the local Mook gave Tillamook its name), and even a skit directed by Carson. The kids were sly enough to find a woppit hole, but quiet and well-behaved enough not to summon or disturb any woppits.

I suspect there will be a lot of heavy snoring tonite as we all settle back into our own cozy beds. The only thing better than camping is getting home and unpacked after camping!

A Red, WHITE, and Blue 4th

Thanks to the White family for introducing us to the wonders of Washington fireworks! The afternoon started with a little friendly Dads & Uncles v. Kids baseball (nobody here is competitive, right?). And we had lots of great food and lots and lots and lots of long-overdue conversation (yes, Tara, I'm talking about you!!). Then Alec and the boys got to play with their fireworks toys. No major injuries to report. What a great time!!

Tiny Dancers

lHere are some pics from the girls' dance recitals. Caroline was in her first recital ever, and was super excited to be on stage! Both girls did a great job, and they're quite the little hams, as you can see --

Caroline the Ballerina:
Katie the Ballerina:Katie's tap/jazz costume, along with her friends Kylie and Ruby:

Preschool & Kindergarten Graduation

It's officially summer! Caroline successfully finished her first year of preschool. She can write her numbers 1 through 6, and knows all her letters and numbers through 20. We've noticed tremendous improvement in her speech clarity and vocabulary. The end of the year also marked the end of Katelyn's kindergarten year. Her newest accomplishment is beginning to read chapter books on her own! I can't believe these kids have grown so fast!

The musical presentation:

Mrs. Kilstrom, Mrs. Martin, and Mrs. Skloss - what a fantastic group of teachers! Thank you for all your work with our girls!Daddy and the kids

Helvetia Half Marathon

I ran the Helvetia Half this year as part of my training for the Portland Marathon. It was a tough 13.1 miles, but I didn't walk at all, and was able to finish strong!

Coming around the corner... finish line is only a few steps away:
My cheerleaders:
Our Family - Helevetia 2010
Our Family - Helvetia 2008:

Kid Shenanigans

We made a mini-trip up to Seattle for more Laidlaw visiting. Tamu bought special hats for the kids, and after about 10 different attempts, here is the picture we were finally able to capture... it took serious work to get these three to sit still all at once!



We spent Father's Day at the Portland Saturday/Sunday market. One of the performers was a group of belly dancers. Here's a picture of Joey watching them... totally enthralled, almost to the point of oogling. Isn't it a bit early for this??

Our underfed linebacker:

Here's Katie, our T-Ball Star - batting and running like a champ!

Cousin Mackenzie

Along with Joseph's birthday, we celebrated the 1st birthday of our niece/cousin Mackenzie. She had lots of fun with the baby and stroller the girls gave her for her birthday, although her first trick was to try climbing in the stroller herself. Sorry, but that baby doll won't push you, Mackenzie!!

Alec with niece Mackenzie:


Aunt Shayna with Joey:


Mackenzie's baby:


Let me in!

Joey Turns ONE!!

Joey's first year has flown by, and we're having more fun with him every day! Below are some pictures of his monkey birthday party. Thanks to everyone who came to celebrate - we're very fortunate to have such fabulous family and friends! And thank you for all the help along Joey's first year, which included two family moves, two business moves, and lots of other hectic fun!

Joey with Tamu:

The cake:

Joey's Giant Melon

Joey's 1-yr check-up was yesterday... he's in the 75th percentile for weight, 70th percentile for height, and 99.5th percentile for head size. Wow is he ever just like his daddy!!

Also, I watched him put together 4 steps today. He's still a lot more interested in crawling because it's much faster for him, but he's getting the hang of those walking feet. Just in time for summer!

Happy Easter!

What a great Easter! We enjoyed hosting our family and friends this Easter, with a lovely ham dinner complete with Teflon-flavored mashed potatoes (oops). Thanks to everyone who joined us for a fun afternoon!

Joey's Morning Playtime

This morning was great... Joey crawled in and out of the playhouse that Aunt Bobbi and Uncle Don gave to Caroline for her birthday. He had a ball! Not only did he crawl through the doors, but also opened the windows and climbed through them, toppling head-first into the house!

Tillamook Spring Break

The kids and I went to Tillamook for the last half of Spring Break. We stayed with Aunt Carol. We were lucky enough to enjoy a walk on the beach at low tide on a sunny day, lunch at the Elks with the Friday crowd, and an ice cream treat at the Cheese Factory before kids had pre-nap meltdowns. On a sad note, we helped with the estate sale of my Grandma's things. I learned some family history and enjoyed seeing aunts and uncles, but no matter how it's done, estate sales are a closing of a chapter in life and a sad affair. To lighten things up, Caroline performed like a rock-star, and Joey stayed calm amid a box of scarves. Leave it to the kids to provide some levity in any situation!