Swinging...

This past weekend was a long one for our family, in a good way. Friday, Christopher had "Wellness Day" which means no school! Though he did go back to school that morning and study into the afternoon, it was nice to know that he'd be home later and really "be home". Despite the wet and cooler weather, we planned a BBQ with some friends on Saturday. It turned out well even though it was quite cold, especially for Kira since we showed up 45 minutes early to get the grill and burgers going before everyone started to show up. And we figured she'd have some fun on the playground before trying to get her to sit and eat. Well, not that she wasn't already, but I think we've created an even bigger obession with swings. That's ALL she wanted to do the three hours we were there! But just sitting and having the cold wind blow in your face doesn't keep you warm. Needless to say, she remained shivering the whole time but would stubbornly insist on swinging. I wonder where she gets that from...? Now that's all she asks for every time we get into the car and heaven forbid we pass a playground! But we had fun and I'm glad she was able to spend some time outdoors. Of course, the next day, the weather was absolutely beautiful- sunny, 60's, clear skies...and we spend most of the day indoors since it was Sunday and church for us is in the middle of the afternoon. But today is pretty nice as well, so I think Kira and I will pull out her new slide and play in the dirt. I have cucumbers, herbs, strawberries and flowers that I would like to get planted soon so I need to clear out our little patch of garden while it's nice outside. Well, we had a nice weekend and we were so happy to spend it with Christopher. It's a bummer that the nicest weather comes when he's indoors all day but at the least the bike ride home should be pleasant ;)!

This is Kira laughing at her daddy...she was laughing harder earlier but as soon as the camera comes out, it dies down, of course.

Singing...

Kira has become quite the singing star...at least, she is at home in front of us. She won't do it for the camera so I tried to tape her singing "Popcorn Popping" on our webcam (hence the poor picture quality) but she couldn't understand where Kira went when I minimized the screen so she'd actually sing. Anway, hopefully I can catch her singing a little bit more. I didn't even know that she knew this song that well until she randomly started singing it to herself in the bathtub.

A quick update on Kira: She's practically over her cold, but with her immune system so overworked, we've stayed home quite a bit this past week. There are a few children that have had the same bout of Rotavirus that was followed with a cold of some sort, so I guess it's still going around. She's starting to sleep through the night a little better and hopefully today, she will take a real nap! She looks so much better and she sounds more like herself. Hopefully, we've had our share of sickness for a while. We're ready to be outside and play with friends again!

(Sorry about the picture...hopefully you can understand what she's singing!)

Cinderella shoes...

These are some dress up shoes that Kira got for her birthday from Gee and Mike! It was great timing because she's been really into Cinderella lately so we call them her "Cinderella shoes". (She's still sick in this video, so she looks kinda out of it.)

(Just realized that the video isn't right...I had spliced two together and you can hear the audio of both but only see the second part...sorry!)

Happy Birthday...

Due to Kira's illness, we opened some gifts on her birthday to take her mind off of how bad she was feeling, but we didn't have cake and songs until yesterday. Thank you for all of your birthday wishes and gifts. Sorry to those who were greeted with a less than enthusiastic birthday girl on the phone. But we appreciate your love for Kira. I can't believe how much she's grown and changed since her last birthday. Our little princess.

Trying my hand at Kira's birthday cake

Taking a bite

Looks like it's not too bad

A little messy...still super cute

Easter...

Easter was really nice. It's funny to think that Kira had had three Easters before she was two! It came pretty early this year. On Saturday, Christopher and I took Kira up to the school for an Easter egg hunt. There were eggs everywhere! This was Kira's first egg hunt and I think that she really enjoyed it. It was pretty cold outside, though. The next morning (Easter), we woke to snow on the ground--yuck. So much for flowers, green grass and the renewal of spring. But, of course, that's not the true meaning of Easter. We mentioned several times about Jesus's resurrection to Kira but it's not as if much of it was understood. After an uplifting church meeting, we joined some friends for dinner and yet another Easter egg hunt. I didn't get pictures of that hunt, but it was fun to watch Kira actually understand her mission of seeking out those pretty colored eggs and claiming them for her basket. Dinner was wonderful and it was nice to get to know some of Christopher's classmates and their families a little bit better. However, two days later, Kira surprised us by presenting with rotavirus. It was awful! It took the poor baby a week to get over it and she's still battling some nasty diapers, but at least stuff's coming out that end and not the other. We're so grateful that she was able to stay hydrated enough to stay out of the hospital and that Christopher and I have remained in good health through it all. Lots of sleepless nights and tears (not just Kira's) but I think we're back to normal now. It definitely put a damper on Kira's birthday celebration, though!