Beautiful People

Now that the older kids are starting to grow into their "big kid" (rather than babyish) looks, it's fun to compare how much they look alike. If you quickly look at Katie and Michael, you might think that they appear very different. But just take a gander at the above. Yes, they have different eyes, noses, and hair color. But their smiles are almost identical; and they have the same high cheek bones. There's no disputing that they are brother and sister. It will be fun to see how Neve develops over the next couple of years. Anyway, as far as we can tell, here's who got what in the genetics department:

Katie -
Eyes, ears, hair, complexion, face shape: Daddy
Nose, cheek bones: Mommy

Michael -
Eyes, hair, complexion, face shape: Mommy
Nose: Grammy
Ears: Daddy

What does everybody else think? See anything else in either that resembles us or older generations?

Upstaged

So when I finally got my B&W photos back from the celebratory flight of the modified 747 carrying the Space Shuttle Discovery over the greater Washington, DC region, they were pale in comparison to this other dynamic duo!

The love that Katie shows for her new sister is extra-ordinary. Traci and I often feel terrible for telling her not to get in little Nevie's face quite so frequently, but she just wants to interact with her (e.g., talking sweetly to her, holding her hand) so badly at every waking moment. Along with the bond that Katie and Michael have had no choice but to form as Mom has tended to the little one more and more, we can't help but look forward to how close this lucky family will be in the coming years...

Flippin' Good Time

It's been awhile since we have been to a birthday party, but we are entering into a very busy party season now! Today, Katie had a blast at her preschool buddy Wren's party. It was held at a gymnastics center, where the girls (and one boy!) received a very fun gymnastics lesson from one of the center's employees. Since parents weren't allowed in the gym, we just had to imagine the adventure through Katie's very limited snippets. Something about a balance beam, rings, and a trampoline... (Katie sheepishly admitted that she was too afraid to try some stuff, but it's all good. She had so much fun that she has already asked to have her party there next year.) Anyway, the parents wanted one last good picture of the preschool crew before they start to go their separate kindergarten ways next year. (Sniff.) Here they are!

The Shirt Says It All

Heaven

Not a bad way to end an evening (i.e., adorable sleeping infant on chest), much less a nice family weekend. We had our first full family excursion to the mall on Saturday (minivan style!), complete with the obligatory trip to the childrens play area. Of course, Neve woke up with her first case of the sniffles this morning, but she doesn't seem to be too worse for the wear. And it was nice to be finally doing something out and about with the entire family together...

And here is how we found the fearsome threesome watching cartoons at one point this weekend. I think they are already plotting against us!

Loosening that Tether

Check another milestone off for Baby Nevie: she took her first bottle today!! This is always a momentous occasion for Traci as it determines how "tight" the breast-feeding tether is going to be over the next year or so. Both Katie and Michael immediately took to the bottle on their first try. Neve was a tad bit more reluctant, but perhaps that is because she had a 5-year-old awkwardly shoving it into her face. She did finish off the bottle, so we'll call it a (somewhat messy) success! Now maybe Traci can schedule that hair appointment that was supposed to happen four days after Neve surprisingly arrived!

One Month. Already???

Hey, everybody...Neve, here!! Well, I've been in this crazy world for exactly one month today, and my parents just can't believe it. They keep staring at me and murmuring "she's getting so big, so fast..." And, they took tons of pictures of me today, just to capture the big day or something. As for me, I'm starting to settle into my new digs, slowly but surely. I've been really nice to Mommy and Daddy this week, giving them 7-8 hour stretches at night. (Sometimes I'm even better than those two other crazy kids that live here!) I'm not sure yet if I'm going to stay with that trend or go back to waking up in the middle of the night. I suppose I will get everybody back at my next growth spurt. I usually nap a lot in the morning, wake up in the middle of the day to see what everybody else is doing, and then have my grouchiest part of the day during this house's crazy time (dinner prep, clean-up, bedtimes). I then like to calm down with a paci and the sound of running water (thanks, bathroom sink!) later in the evening. I really love all of the members of my family for different reasons. The big one with the deep voice (Daddy?) leaves for most of the day, but he is always ready to hold me the minute he comes home. The other big one (Mommy?) is my current favorite because she gives me food, food, food!! I love my big sister (Katie!) because she always wants to play with, touch, and talk to me. And, my big brother, although he is a bit rough, makes me happy because he is always laughing and smiling at me. I think I'm going to like it here, as soon as I adjust to the craziness of the big, ol' world. Stay tuned!