Jackson, the gymnast.

Pre-school (ages 3-5) Gymnastics class came to an end tonight. Jackon really enjoyed himself --he was able to practice rolling, jumping, balancing, climbing, swinging; he also got to interact with a group of other kids and follow directions from a teacher. He did so well! We are very proud of him. Jackson claims there were two main reasons he had such a good time at gymnastics: #1 - because he LOVED his teacher, Mackenzie (a.k.a. "kenzie," according to Jackson), who was absolutely fabulous with the kids; and #2 - his friend, Emma, was in the same small activity group as Jackson. Mackenzie, is shown in the first two video clips, and Emma is in the second and third video...

Flip on the bar:


Back-walk-over:


Jumping on trampoline:

As Good As It Gets.

Have you ever tried to get eight little kids, all age 4 and under, to sit still long enough to capture a decent photo?

The other day, I met up with a few of my girlfriends and their children at a local park. We attempted to get all our kids (minus a newborn baby girl and an 8 month old boy who are not pictured) to pose for a picture.

Believe me when I tell you, this is "as good as it gets..."

No more crawling...

Jessica has officially reached the "point of no return"... :)

No more crawling --only walking will do for this determined little girl!
And, (as if walking in itself isn't a challenging enough skill) Jessica has decided that holding an item in each hand is a necessity while she waddles around the house.

Here is a picture of her walking with a balloon in one hand and a toy turtle in the other:

Allison Olivia Devine

My little niece, Allison, was born via c-section today. Both mom and baby are doing wonderfully. Allison weighed in at 7 lbs. .08 oz. and 18 inches.
She is a gorgeous baby girl --seems to have inhereted her mom's beautiful long eyelashes too.







My little sister is a mom!
Laura, I'm so happy for Chris and you...welcome to parenthood.

Easter 2009

Our kids were "spoiled rotten" by their grandparents this year for Easter!
Take a look at some of these pictures and see for yourselves...






...and that was just Easter at Grandma Chris and Grandpa Bob's house!
We also had Easter celebration get-togethers at Grandma Barb and Grandpa Terry's, G.G. Clare's, and our small family one at our house. Let's just say the kids (mainly Jackson) have enough sweets, treats, and toys to last him for years to come. He is now also a "pro" at egg hunts :)

Although Easter '09 left mom and dad feeling a little exhausted, both the kids had a terrific time!

Jessica's First Steps...caught on video!

Jessica walks!
She'd been taking a few steps here and there throughout the month of March; now she's able to walk pretty much the entire length of our living room. The two videos were taken today. Although she doesn't get too far on the videos, it's enough to at least give you a demonstration of her progress.

What weighs 54 pounds...

What weighs 54 pounds,



has 26 teeth,



and eats 10 times a day...?







...we do! Of course.








The kids had a doctor visit March 27th. Jessica weighed in at 22 lbs., and Jackson was 32 lbs.. This puts Jessica in the 50 percentile for weight and Jackson in the 10th percentile (although we're pretty sure he may be closer to 34 pounds on an average day; he had just gotten over a bad case of diarrhea when he was weighed). Jessica is 29 inches long, placing her in the 50th percentile for her height. Jackson is 36.5 inches, 25th percentile.

Other than Jackson having some issues with diarrhea lately, the kids are both perfectly healthy. For that, Jason and I are very grateful.