Six

With everything else going on I almost forgot to announce that Justin and I have been married for six years as of today. While our bodies show the wear and tear of the last six years, I can still think back to what it felt like waiting to walk down the stairs to see Justin waiting for me. Our love has changed with each adventure but our commitment to experiencing them together only grows stronger. Thanks J for sticking with me through it all. I love you!

Happy birthday little P

At 11:00pm on October 13th, 2008 I began timing contractions. Two and a half hours later, Joshua Parker Cline was in our arms, turning our family of three into a family of four. We love you Parker and can't believe how quickly you're growing up!

Family photos

I snagged a "seize the deal" offer back in August ($80 photo shoot for $20) and coerced Justin and the kids into participating for some fall family photos. And by coerced I mean I pleaded with Justin and he bribed the kids with ice cream. Whatever works, right? We met Jessica, the photographer, on Saturday afternoon up the Rattlesnake and had some fun running around in the woods. She's posted the best shots on her website. We get to pick 10 to have as prints. Which ones do you think we should choose?

She likes it

Turns out Madeleine really likes the dress I made for her. She wore it to school this week with some jeans underneath since it's a little chilly and outside play at preschool dictates the need for modesty :)

Is hair allowed to do that?

Until 2 months ago, I would have sworn that Parker would grow up with stick-straight hair. But something happened over the summer: his hair started to curl! It started at his crown in the back and is slowly progressing around the sides of his head to the front. I'd been letting him sport the shaggy surfer look but after his bath tonight I decided to get down to business. Snipping here and there resulted in a much better haircut even if it does make him look a bit feminine. He has already being called a girl by 50% of the people we interact with at the store so I figured this couldn't hurt his ego too much. Justin says the wings have to go; we'll see when I get brave enough again to cut around his ears with sharp scissors.

Lawn ornament

One of our toilets sat in the front yard for an hour Saturday morning. The unanticipated chore of taking out a toilet was put on Justin's to-do list midweek when I discovered that the kids had clogged it by flushing two of Parker's pacifiers. Only upon disassembling the toilet did we find out the biggest culprit: a pen! What were they thinking?!? Fortunately all were easily removed and Justin got everything put back together quickly. I wonder what they'll try to flush next...

Flying, sorting, dancing, crashing, drawing

Carol wasn't lying when she told me Minneapolis had more playgrounds than any other city she's been to. Here's the one in the airport! We were lucky enough to go past it on our first day of flying. It's dedicated to Charles Schultz and since Madeleine loves Snoopy we had to take a picture with him. Unfortunately this playground had some glass walls that Parker apparently didn't see so he got a black eye by trying to run through one! I'd suggest all kid play-spaces steer away from glass because Parker can't have been the first to try that.

Staring out the windows. It never gets old watching airplanes take off and land. At Nanna and Pappy's house. JoAnn brought out some shells from the Outer Banks and let Madeleine play with them on the deck while we waited for George's grandkids to come over to play. It quickly became Madeleine's favorite activity, outside of playing with Buoy the puppy (those pictures are on Nanna's camera).

After the wedding, the grandkids took to the floor to show off their moves. Okay, it was only ring around the rosie but still they were quite the entertainment! Madeleine and Parker ran around with their new cousins all night and were disappointed to find out they wouldn't be coming to Montana with us (their family lives in Florida).

Downtown Phillipsburg (where the reception was) and rolling PA hills

Being supervised by JoAnn's dear friend Audrey (Hi Audrey! I know you're reading this :)

Wedding cake eating. Both of the kids managed to stick their fingers in the cake before it was cut and served. What can I say? My kids know a good thing when they see it!

Flying home. There was a lot of eating, a lot of sleeping, and a lot of goofing off.

Best buy ever! A last minute find on clearance at Target last week: Crayola wipe off drawing pad. Entertained Madeleine for hours. We flew both directions without a portable DVD player. I think we deserve gold medals.

This is just a smattering of what happened. Most of the events were captured on JoAnn's camera so hopefully I'll find a way to get a hold of those and share some time soon.