2010 Christmas 4

With Love Chartreuse Christmas Card

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2010 Summer @ the Library

It's Summertime and we're making the most of all the activities offered around us. Today we signed Molly up for the reading program at our local library. Her librarian Amai would be so proud of her. She got some stickers and a chart we'll use to track her reading progress. Every 8 books will get her to the next "goal". It was a toss up today which she liked better--pulling books off the shelves or playing on the cushions.


On the way home from the library. Molly put on her hat by herself (correctly at that) and read her "Animal Baby" books that Amai & Baba get her each month.

Waiting for Daddy to get home

Daddy gets home around 5:30 most evenings. Molly is usually playing while I get dinner ready. Here was the scene for one night this week: Molly was running in circles around the living area, ran through the kitchen, grabbed a wet dishcloth that was hanging from the sink and proceeded to "clean" all over the living room and kitchen. It was adorable.














In the meantime, Toby was hanging out, watching it all, thinking "uh, you don't expect ME to do that, do you?".

Surprises in our yard!

We've now been in our new house almost 6 months. I can't believe it's already been that long. We are enjoying seeing the different plants that have sprouted through spring and into summer. First we had the Spring plants. There is a beautiful green forsythia bush in the backyard that bloomed beautiful golden yellow flowers in April. At the same time there were beautiful peonies and roses blooming in the front yard.

Summer is in full swing, even though it is only the first week of June and we find a beautiful hydrangea bush in the back yard. Now, a more seasoned gardener would know at first glance the bushes in her back yard. Not this gal! I'm learning as they sprout! And it's so fun. Here are pictures of the beautiful hydrandeas I cut and for an arrangement in the house.

Our neighbors just to the South of us were doing some spring cleaning in their yard and donated some hostas. We planted those in our front yard just this week--now we'll wait and see if they like their new home.

Library time at the Zoo

I love efficiency. Combine an outing to the zoo with library time. Seriously, can it get any better than that? The kids and I went to "Wild Tuesdays Storytime". This was Molly's first storytime experience so I sat with her. The kids were given a juicebox and Zoo animal crackers (appropriate, huh). Molly did pretty good sitting and loved the juicebox. We were read 3 animal books, then we met one of the zoo keepers.
There was a really cute craft activity to wind up the hour. I was very impressed with the whole thing. Molly picked up her "Eager Reader" card so she can read books, report back and get a prize. We may just have to make reading time at the zoo a weekly occurrence this summer.

I didn't get any pics of Molly during storytime but here are a couple others from our zoo day. Toby seemed to enjoy the outing. Actually he just slept through the entire thing.

Just a Tuesday

Today was a day mostly at home. Well, we did get out and pick up some much needed groceries & a trip to the credit union. This afternoon, however, was spent doing one of my all-time favorite things: Organizing! It was, once again, time to go through the kids' clothing. Hmm, do you move Winter things completely out? Will she still be able to wear some of them in the Fall? What to do? Well, we left some and moved some.

No matter what happened with the clothing, the kids were kept very entertained. Molly loved playing in Toby's bed (i.e., the pack-n-play) and Toby enjoyed a bit of tummy time. Molly has often been toting around a bag or container. Today, I put a hat on her head while she was playing and was then so surprised that she left it on for quite some time (now if she'll keep one on when we're out in the sun).

Spring arrives...on our porch

This past week we have spent some time on the front porch. We've worked on making our porch inviting by painting and adding some decor (another post in the making). God's creation has been adding her own beauty to our porch, specifically to the Boston fern we have on a hook.


On Friday Molly, Toby & I were watering our ferns when we found Mrs. "Robin") had a perfect little nest built in one of the ferns. Note, two eggs...















On Saturday, we were loading up the car to leave for Dallas. I told my Hubby that I wanted to check to make sure the eggs were still ok. Mrs. Robin had added a surprise to the nest...














Sunday night. We got home from Dallas later than expected. After getting the kids put in bed I decided to check on the eggs once again. I gently tapped on the hanging basket so Mrs. Robin wouldn't be surprised by my interruption. Upon taking the fern down again, we were surprised to find Mrs. Robin has been very industrious. Now there are FOUR!








Isn't it so neat to see God's handiwork displayed in the Spring greens, gentle (and not-so-gentle) rains, and in the new life around us--babies, calves, colts and robin eggs?

The New Sewing Machine

We have been graced to be given a piano. A family in our church is moving the mother out of her home and was trying to find a home for a spinet piano. They called us asking if we were interested. Although we have a keyboard in the Braddock family, it's still not the same as a real piano. We looked at it last week and had a mover bring it from about 1/2 a mile away to our house Tuesday night. It is going to be a joy to have over the years. Molly is already enjoying playing (hear, "banging") on it.

Matchy Matchy

Molly and Toby both in an outfit that 'Amai and Auntie KK bought for one of Molly's showers. I really think they looks similar as newborns. :) I'm sure Toby will grow into himself just like Molly grew into herself. Fun to see the similar pictures though.

In the pictures Molly (right, Nov 2008) is 3 months old and Toby (left, Apr 2010) is 2 months old.

Toby's Baby Dedication

This past Sunday was Toby's baby dedication. Really, it was a dedication for the parents. We are publically committing to raising our son, Toby, in a home that will lead and point him to Jesus. It was a neat time of commitment for our family (along with 12 other families) in front of our Meadowood church family.

Oatmeal anyone?

Molly had oatmeal for breakfast. I'm sure it isn't a surprise that she was eating it all by her self. She even smiled for me when I told her to.

Here is a humorous video of Molly very systematically moving her toys from the basket to the couch.

Toby on the move

Jace came to visit for the day while Auntie KK worked. We went to the zoo earlier in the day. Auntie KK came back to have supper and spend a little time with us before going on home. Here's a little video of all of us but especially one of Toby wide awake and moving about some.

Toby's First Smile (6 weeks)

We got our first smile from Toby. Actually, Grandmother was the recipient of Toby's first smile. G'Mother and Papa came over for Sunday lunch yesterday afternoon. G'Mother was dabbing at Toby's mouth and he smiled right at her. He continued to smile at her for several minutes which allowed me to get from the kitchen to the living room and then to get the camera--amazing! Toby's right at 6 weeks old

Our typical Sunday Afternoon

After we've gone to worship God on Sunday morning we get to come home and have a nice family lunch and then spend the afternoon together as a family. Lately Grandmother and Papa have joined us for lunch quite often which has been so nice. Curt & Molly usually take Sunday afternoon naps and I try to flip through the newspaper. More specifically, I flip through the sale papers. As the saying goes, you need to train them early!

This was Molly last Sunday afternoon. Notice she's looking at the Toys R Us paper. :)

1st Trip to the Zoo

Today was Toby's first trip to the zoo. We went with our friends Nicole and Grace. It was Grace's 3rd birthday today and we were very happy to celebrate with her. It was quite a feat having Toby on my front and Jace and Molly in a double stroller. Thank goodness Nicole was there to help out! We had fun at the new Children's Center at the zoo. Molly loved chasing after the goats.

The Waiting Game...come on, Chicco

We have two children now. Ah, but you already knew this! Going to Walmart and Target is not a problem--there are shopping carts. Going to the mall, zoo (reference http://ridgehavenmaven.blogspot.com/2010/03/look-out-zoo.html) (As you can tell, I haven't learned how to link to my other blog posts yet. Can anyone tell me how to do this?), going to the library and the mall is not quite so easy. I have decided I for sure want a double stroller. The quest has been difficult, however, since I found out my infant car seat manufacturer (Chicco) doesn't make a double stroller. Curt and I have been on the hunt for a double stroller that will allow for our infant carrier.

In his quest to help me find the perfect stroller, my fabulous husband found out that Chicco was coming out with a double stroller in April 2010! Wonderful Day! All my dreams have come true! Wait, it's not here yet...so, the wait is on. Hmm, I may have to wait in a line at Babies R Us to get the first on the market. We'll see. In the meantime, I wait patiently for that day!

Look out Zoo!

I had lunch with a couple friends from work today. Well, a couple of friends I USED to work with but thankfully still take time to have lunch with me. Our family was given a great gift today. To celebrate Toby's birth and Molly's second birthday (at the end of the Summer), my friend Lisa gave our family a pass to the Zoo! We will have so much fun taking the kids to the zoo this Spring, Summer, and Fall! It looks like our first playdate at the zoo has already been tentatively scheduled for Mar 29th! Look out, zoo! We're coming to visit!

Thanks Lisa! Great gift!

Here's a picture from our trip to the zoo with Amai and Cousin Jace last Fall 2009. Amai, can you come back and join us for our next zoo adventure?

Learning to Climb

The Moll-ster has got just tall enough that she can clamber around. Her latest accomplishment is climbing onto the couch (or anywhere else she can). Check out this adorable video! She CAN climb up the couch but many times she looks to one of us to help her up.

An aside: Note that the stripes on her tights stop at her knees. These are actually 0-6 mo tights--maybe it's time to buy her some 18 mo tights! :)

Toby's First Bath

Yup, it was time for Toby's first official bath! Toby was just shy of 3 weeks when this inaugural event took place. Yes, we probably should have done it before 3 weeks had passed but you'd think keeping his "top and tail" (as the British would say) clean was not exactly difficult since Toby hasn't exactly been playing all that hard. :)

I'm not so sure Toby was all that impressed with his first bath. He wasn't too happy with getting a dunking in some warm water and cried through the whole thing. He sure enjoyed being bundled up and cuddled afterward.

Fine Dining at Chez Gathright

Thanks to my two Gathright sisters-in-law Curt and I were able to have a beautiful dinner a couple nights ago. Our table looked so pretty with my Johnson Bros china that the gals have been helping me collect!

I made a new recipe from the Taste of Home cookbook (courtesy of Lisa Lynn, for my birthday). We had Chicken Wellington which is basically a pan-seared fillet of chicken then baked in a pie pastry. Yum yum. Dinner ambiance would not be complete without lit candles, fancy salad (in the plastic-ware) and baby in the bouncy seat! Molly had been next to us in her high chair but she was long gone by the time our plates were clean.

Repetition in a must in child-rearing. Each night before dinner we grab Molly's hands and prayer for our food. Tonight she actually put her hands out for prayer (yes, they were already dirty) before we had even started! And we're always rewarded with a beautiful smile afterward. We're still working with her to say "Amen" at the end of the prayer.

The Meeting of the Haskells

Saturday our family of 4 (still surprises me to say that) loaded up and made the trip to see all of my grandparents. We had not been to see any of them since Toby was born so this was the perfect opportunity to do so. We started out at the farm where my dad's parents (Honey & Papaw) live. We had show and tell and then a great lunch which included Honey's wonderful rolls and cinnamon rolls! Yum. I didn't even have to twist Honey's arm to get a picture of the great-grandkids with them. :)

Then we set off to my the home of my mother's parents (Meme & Papaw) where there was a baby shower in honor of Baby Lila and Baby Caleb. This was Toby's first introduction to his namesake: Haskell David. I think Papaw was really pleased that we named our son Toby Haskell. He said "now there's two Haskells" and got teary-eyed when introducing Toby to the other family members. Our entire family has been blessed by the Godly man Papaw is and the heritage he has given our family.