My Ava

These pictures were taken by our beloved Sara Green. You can check out her wonderful photos here. Also, you can usually spot her work on any picture we send out of the kids.

Today Ava went to the fabric store with her Gram. She had heard me complaining about a rubber band shortage and spotted two on the floor of the store. She asked the young man cutting fabric if she needed to pay for them. He said no, that she may have them. When Ava and Gram got to the register to pay for the fabric they were purchasing, Ava said, "He said I didn't have to pay for these, but I need them in a bag for my mom." Then, she told Gram that she wanted him to see her shoes. He, of course, admired them appropriately - as a man should when offered an opportunity to compliment a young lady! (What a total flirt!)

Also, she has begun to speak with a Southern accent. We believe that this is a result of our recent visit to Laura's house in Tennessee. She is actually quite good. She talks about things being, 'Mahn (mine)' all of the time! And she won't stop!!! I think she may be gearing up for a life as a Kimmel wife. She'd sound just like her mother-in-law, Ann.

We fell off the grid...but we're back!!!

Here's what it looks like at our house these days!

We love it when Charlotte says Ava's name. Really, she calls her 'Biva'. It is so sweet, because she only says with love. A few weeks ago, Ava fell asleep quickly when the girls went to bed (a truly rare occurance). As we sat in the living room, we heard through the monitor, "Biva...Biva...(sensing that something must be wrong)...uh oh...". It was so sweet.

Here are a couple of videos where we're trying to get Charlotte to say Ava's name...and we just enjoy listening to her cute little voice.

Our little Isaac spends a lot of time doing this. He's a big time snoozer, and when his Gram talks to him while he sleeps, he smiles at her. Actually, he is turning into quite a 'chunka munka'. If he keeps this up, we're going to have to change his wrestling name from 'Ike the Spike' to something more suitable to a Sumo wrestler.

His Name Is Isaac Wade

So, finally, here's the story of our darling little baby boy. Friday, April 24th, in the early hours of the morning, the slow, gentle labor that led up to the birth of Isaac Wade began. Unlike the train wreck, 3 hour labor we had with Charlotte, this was peaceful and mellow...until the last 20 minutes of course. Mark was a great support through the whole thing...love that man!

He was born at 9:40am on Friday morning. He weighed 9lbs 1oz and was 21.5 inches long. He cried at birth and really hasn't cried much since. During some prayer ministry while I was pregnant, someone said that he was going to be like his daddy. Turns out that so far they are right! He is a mild mannered, beautiful little baby.

The girls love him. Ava says, 'His name is Isaac Wade.' She sings sweet little songs to him all of the time. Here are some examples:

Oh baby, baby. I love you, love you, love you.

If you want some na-na (our funny word for nursing), if you need some na-na, you can have some na-na.

Even Charlotte loves him and helps out by bringing him paci's and throwing away diapers.

So, we are thankful for Isaac. He is delightful and wonderful, and we hope that you'll come see him soon!

Happy Birthday, Dear Leah!

This is what we have to say today!

Can't fix the dumb thing!

So, I realized that I've entered the wrong date on the baby countdown thing on this blog. The problem is that I can't fix the dumb thing! The good thing about this is that the baby can't count...or is that a bad thing!!!

Don't worry...

Don't worry. We haven't had our baby without you. We've just been too busy enjoying our lives to tell you about it! A few cute things, though...
- Charlotte calls Ava 'Biva'
- If the baby gives me a good kick or I have an uncomfortable contraction, Ava gives me
Pam, her pink doggie, to snuggle my stomach. The dog doesn't help, but Ava's sweetness
and generosity always does.
- My mom is here, so in general, everything is better than it used to be!

Things that Charlotte likes to do.

Charlotte LOVES to build! And, if you don't know what to do with her for about 15 minutes, stick her in a booster seat and give her a box of crayons! Paper is totally optional!

Girls and Puddles!!!

I would have never known that 'puddle jumping' was intuitive, but when Charlotte was let loose in the driveway - which is full of puddles - she walked straight to the biggest puddle and started stomping! Also, these are the first real shoes that she has worn. She has only worn Robeez shoes or boots up to this point, but she was a natural in rain boots!

Cute girls and Jeannie Bean!

The girls love a sunny day and an ice cream cone. When we were at Ikea on Sunday (all of us love it except Charlotte), the girls were eating a 'reward' ice cream cone. The woman at the table next to us commented on how well the girls managed their ice cream cones. Please! I have raised these girls from birth! They are not rookies in this area! I mean, really! We live in Norwood! The home of United Dairy Farmers!

Here's Ava, drenched from swimming with Ms. Marsha. (darling swimsuit, complements of Wonderful Kira)

Jeannie Bean and Ethan came to help mom with the garden yesterday. The girls loved it because we spent hours outside. The best part was the wagon ride, though! The rest of the time, Charlotte wandered around chattering about outside things, and Ava sat with her feet up in a green plastic chair from Aunt Laura. Ava was playing the part of the supervisor.