time is flying

Welcome, spring (soon)!!! Where has the time gone? This weekend was beautiful and busy and I am exhausted! I will try to remember all that we've been up to in this late-night blog update! :)

Samantha likes her sister about the same as usual...not so much. In the rare occasion she decides to acknowledge her, it seems pretty sweet, but it is always short lived, and only on her terms. Things were really hard at first and now they're pretty neutral. I'll take it! :) 

Last Sunday we were getting ready for church and Sam walked out of our bathroom looking like this... (note the soaked pajamas). She mindlessly laid down to watch tv with her Dora doll and I went to the bathroom to see why in the world she was drenched!

We have a basin that we keep next to the sink to wash Natalie's bottles each night. Sammi had climbed up on my vanity stool and dumped the entire basin over. It might not have been as big of a deal, but the caulk around our sink has been in need of repair, and all of the water drained through the crack and into my makeup drawer. (EEEK!) We quickly emptied everything out and set it all out to dry and wiped everything down, including the soaked carpet and inside of our cabinets. I forgot how much stuff I can actually cram into a makeup drawer...

(Oh, and while we were doing this---by the way----Samantha, in the next room, decided to strip down until she was naked and peed all over the floor. Needless to say, by this time we cleaned that up, we missed church.) Two year olds are oh, so much fun! :) :) :)

Our hair stylist and friend, Amy, has a client whose daughter has cancer. Last weekend Amy threw a huge fundraiser for her at the salon. All of the stylists and nail techs donated their entire Sunday to do haircuts, nails, and massages to raise money for her. It was awesome. There were balloons, food, a raffle, and it was packed with people there to support the cause. We took Sammi to get her hair cut and contribute a little to the cause. 

Sammi got a juice box to keep her occupied and we talked about the ocean animals on her smock so that she would sit still.

Doesn't she look pretty? 

She got a sucker for being such a good girl. Amy really thought of everything!

Natalie has been growing, growing, growing! She is changing so much and is becoming more and more alert! She loves it when you talk to her, and she pays attention to everything going on around her!

Yesterday we attended my great aunt's memorial service in Fort Wayne. I forgot to take photos of us having a wonderful (and healthy) feast at Dan's parents'  before the service. (Thanks so much, Kathe...it was fantastic!!!!) The service was nice too...Mary was 99 when she died so she definitely had a full life!

My aunt Taff (Taff is her nickname but all I have ever known her by) flew in from her home in Africa for the service and stayed with my parents. Today my brother and Ashley met us at mom & dad's house for lunch and visiting (another great meal with calorie counts provided---thanks, mom & dad!)

We spent a long time looking through Taff's photos of Africa and hearing stories about life there. She is married to an awesome man named Sonkoi, who is a junior elder of the the Massai tribesmen of Kenya. They have a unique life full of amazing stories, so different than that of our lifestyle here in the USA. I LOVE LOVE LOVE visiting with her!  

Natalie loved snuggle time with her great aunt. :)

I love you, Aunt Taff! Dan and I would love to visit you....as soon as we get rid of our fears of lions, elephants, and tigers, oh my! :) (Actually our fears are more of the lack of electricity, plumbing, and tribesman drinking blood for nutrition...but I know you'd take good care of us!!!)

And one last photo of cute little Natalie enjoying her Baby Bjorn time tonight. Most of the time she isn't so fond of it but tonight it worked great!

We've had a lot of fun seeing some friends lately. Otherwise, most days are just the usual...work, work, work.... get Sam to school.... make dinner.... fret about how messy the house has been lately... try to sleep... and start all over! :)

Dan and I have downloaded the "Lose It!" app on our iPhones and it may just save our lives. Seriously! It keeps track of our calories, weight loss, and goals, and it makes us think before we put anything into our mouths lately! I've lost 3 pounds in my first week so far, and Dan has lost 14 pounds so far. (He's been doing it a little longer.) We are both really excited to get into better shape. 

Natalie scared us with her first fever of 100.5. After about 12 hours of her crying and her temperature going up steadily, Dan rushed her to Urgent Care where they looked at him perplexed and said "Well, she doesn't have a fever anymore!" He brought her home and she slept 9 hours straight. I am so glad, but still so confused by that day. ???

I'm off to bed, too late as usual, to start a new day tomorrow! Much love and hugs to you all!!!