Happy Birthday!

The baby girl turned 11 yesterday!

She was born the day after Christmas 2003. That meant she was 364 days old on her first Christmas and never got one of those special "Baby's 1st Christmas" outfits. They don't make them to fit almost-one-year-olds. She never did complain about that, though. And she doesn't seem to mind having her birthday so close to another big day.

 

Yesterday we surprised her with the help of some friends. They hid in the kitchen and then jumped out and surprised her. It took her a bit of time to recover from the surprise and shock, but she loved it! She also loved the sprinkle-coated cake and twisty candles and playing her favorite game with more than three people.

A special thanks to our friend Aaron for the photos.

And, just for fun, one of my favorite photos from their trip to the coast earlier in December. Salt water and air must wash away most traces of sibling rivalry.

TBT and a Birthday

 The above photo was taken exactly 15 years ago today, even though it doesn't feel like it could have been just a few years. The photo below was taken one week ago. That boy has grown a lot!

Happy 15th Birthday, Andy!

Birthday Eve

Happy (almost) Birthday to me! Mmmmm...Señora Jarrin's locro,

Esther's raspberry punch, family...what a great birthday eve dinner!

 

Happy 2014

The first two weeks of this new year have been busy. For us, just getting a fairly good family photo can be an all-day job. We managed to get this one not only with the self-timer, but on the first try.

We are back into the swing of homeschool and BSF. Along with that, so far this year we've had one teen night, a piano lesson, two dentist appointments, a birthday dinner party for a friend, and a fellow missionary family for lunch. I don't even keep track of the hours Dan has spent trying to get my visa transferred from my old passport to my new one. We've been at it since May..of last year.

Yesterday, we went to the park for P.E. It's the second time we've been there, and maybe we'll remember to take bread for the ducks on our third visit.

(The dribbling duck had just gotten a bite of Carolyn's cupcake!)

  Andy had trouble getting "real" exercise because of his long arms and legs. :)

And me...well, I'm just enjoying having my very own minion to put to work!