This is my firstborn, my now nearly 5 year old daughter! Her big brown eyes and bright smile bring me so much joy! Kevin and I are still amazed at how big she is (not literally, of course, afterall, she is 1/2 Hetland). She will start Kindergarten in August and is eagerly awaiting it! She loves to draw and color, and really do any sort of craft to use her creativity. She is starting to read and truly loves learning. She thrives on being the oldest, learning independence, helping me, and showing Rylin what to do, how to do it, etc. She loves being outside, especially in water. She absolutely loves shopping, especially for shoes! She loves going golfing with Kevin and her pink putter, going to the movies with Daddy or Grandpa, and going for coffee/hot chocolate with whoever will take her. She is very much a perfectionist, and thus is easily frustrated when things don't go her way. She loves her extended family and friends, and gets very excited to spend time with them. She has a very tender and compassionate nature, hates seeing people hurt and is always the first to offer comfort. This is a trait from nature (our Creator), not nurture, as this is not a characteristic people would use of me. She is very observant and inquisitive and wants to know how everything works and why. She once asked me why the water is clear in our cups, but is blue in the lake. What would your answer have been? It amazes me, and yet doesn't, how many questions she has about everything and yet has never once questioned God or Jesus' existence. How does He see everything, How can He be everywhere, yes, but never a doubt that He does exist (confirmation of what Romans 1 teaches!) She loves to sing, and I'm afraid to say, sings quite off tune like me, and loves to pray. She told me just last week during bedtime, when we were saying our "I love you's" that she loves God most of all because He made us and gives us everything.
So this is Rylin at 2 1/2. She is quite possibly one of the most adorable kids I have ever seen. She is extremely petite, still wearing 18 month old clothes, but really does this surprise anyone? She is very busy and rarely sits still. We are still waiting for her to sit through a book or a cartoon. She is very social, loves to talk on the phone to whoever I am talking to, will talk to anyone as long as I am nearby, and really enjoys singing. Her favorite song right now is the hymn, "I'll Obey and Serve You" and she loves listening to "her" CD in the car. She is a self proclaimed vegetarian, I honestly cannot get her to eat meat, and she is extremely stubborn and strong willed. Rylin loves to be silly and goofy with her random acts and makes us laugh often, but she can really be quite sneaky and a little stinker when she feels like it. She has a very animated personality and expresses herself well with her eyes, face, hands and voice. She loves ball, and she is my pick for our athlete since she already loves sunflower seeds. She absolutely loves her big sister, but make no mistake, she will not be ignored, left out or bossed around, this girl has a mind of her own. She too is very compassionate, like Kacia. Everytime I prick my finger (which is 4 times a day for a couple of months now) she says without fail, "Oh, I sorry Mom." Her favorite thing to say, thus my least favorite thing to hear all day is "hungry Mom" repeat, repeat, repeat, etc. Seriously, you would think she would weigh so much more with as often as she eats! She thinks she loves dogs, remembers everyone we know who has one, runs to them at the park, and then screams the second they get too close. But if a fence or slider door are in between her and dog, she is very intrigued by watching them. Right now she is learning to pray on her own, and these are words I treasure so much!
So this is me and my girls. In so many ways they are so alike, and in others they are as different as the color of their eyes. Life is about to change forever, but in the meantime, this is us.
Me and my Boy!
and the ears.
Our cake melted so badly in the heat we just HAD to eat it first, but I didn't hear any complaints!
Our "cowgirl" theme was difficult to find things for, but we did a pony relay...
and panned for gold.
Kacia's new doll and treasured gift, "Jenny" (weird, I know.)
My big girl with her big girl Bible.
I'll post more about our trip to Washington later, but for now, here's a few pictures of a truly beautiful and special day! My battery ran out, so I will have to borrow some of Breanna's later, but here's what I've got.
Well, it is hard to believe that Lincoln is already a month old! Sorry for the lack of picture updates, Kevin has had the camera with him most days for work lately, and well, I've been just a little busy adjusting. So far (knock on wood) Lincoln seems to be a fairly content baby. We all know it is about time I had an "easy" one. He loves his sisters, his swing and his food. He is sleeping better than the girls, which is really the only scale I go by. His cheeks are filling out quite a bit, but then again, this is a very common thing with my family! He still has all of his hair, so maybe, just maybe, it will stick around! The girls are still very much in love with him. Our routine is the same every morning. He wakes up, eats, gets changed and then they argue over who's turn it is to hold him first. Rylin loves to get really close to his face, pet him and say in a high pitched voice, "Hey buddy, yook at me bud, Yincoln, hey buddy." It has been a lot of fun to watch her adjust to the big sister role, and I think she is doing quite well. She hates it when he cries, and comes running to me, "Mom, mom, Yincoln need you! Yincoln crying, he want you!!!!" She has also renamed one of her dolls, Lincoln, and feeds him, burps him, rocks him while singing "rock a bye baby", puts him in the swing and puts him down for naps. It's quite cute to watch!We have been slightly more homebound than normal, but that is to be expected, plus it's just stinkin hot outside. Kevin has been really good about trying to take the girls swimming often, even if its for 45 minutes, it gives me a break, and they have a blast! I cannot tell you how grateful I am for this house! It has been an incredible blessing to be back in town, and the office in the backyard has been truly awesome for Kevin's work. He is actually able to do a good majority of his work without leaving the house. Just having him come in throughout the day for lunch or whatever, breaks up our day. I thank the Lord for providing this house and know that it has made a tremendous difference in our family time and in adjusting with the baby. 
This is my firstborn, my now nearly 5 year old daughter! Her big brown eyes and bright smile bring me so much joy! Kevin and I are still amazed at how big she is (not literally, of course, afterall, she is 1/2 Hetland). She will start Kindergarten in August and is eagerly awaiting it! She loves to draw and color, and really do any sort of craft to use her creativity. She is starting to read and truly loves learning. She thrives on being the oldest, learning independence, helping me, and showing Rylin what to do, how to do it, etc. She loves being outside, especially in water. She absolutely loves shopping, especially for shoes! She loves going golfing with Kevin and her pink putter, going to the movies with Daddy or Grandpa, and going for coffee/hot chocolate with whoever will take her. She is very much a perfectionist, and thus is easily frustrated when things don't go her way. She loves her extended family and friends, and gets very excited to spend time with them. She has a very tender and compassionate nature, hates seeing people hurt and is always the first to offer comfort. This is a trait from nature (our Creator), not nurture, as this is not a characteristic people would use of me. She is very observant and inquisitive and wants to know how everything works and why. She once asked me why the water is clear in our cups, but is blue in the lake. What would your answer have been? It amazes me, and yet doesn't, how many questions she has about everything and yet has never once questioned God or Jesus' existence. How does He see everything, How can He be everywhere, yes, but never a doubt that He does exist (confirmation of what Romans 1 teaches!) She loves to sing, and I'm afraid to say, sings quite off tune like me, and loves to pray. She told me just last week during bedtime, when we were saying our "I love you's" that she loves God most of all because He made us and gives us everything.
So this is Rylin at 2 1/2. She is quite possibly one of the most adorable kids I have ever seen. She is extremely petite, still wearing 18 month old clothes, but really does this surprise anyone? She is very busy and rarely sits still. We are still waiting for her to sit through a book or a cartoon. She is very social, loves to talk on the phone to whoever I am talking to, will talk to anyone as long as I am nearby, and really enjoys singing. Her favorite song right now is the hymn, "I'll Obey and Serve You" and she loves listening to "her" CD in the car. She is a self proclaimed vegetarian, I honestly cannot get her to eat meat, and she is extremely stubborn and strong willed. Rylin loves to be silly and goofy with her random acts and makes us laugh often, but she can really be quite sneaky and a little stinker when she feels like it. She has a very animated personality and expresses herself well with her eyes, face, hands and voice. She loves ball, and she is my pick for our athlete since she already loves sunflower seeds. She absolutely loves her big sister, but make no mistake, she will not be ignored, left out or bossed around, this girl has a mind of her own. She too is very compassionate, like Kacia. Everytime I prick my finger (which is 4 times a day for a couple of months now) she says without fail, "Oh, I sorry Mom." Her favorite thing to say, thus my least favorite thing to hear all day is "hungry Mom" repeat, repeat, repeat, etc. Seriously, you would think she would weigh so much more with as often as she eats! She thinks she loves dogs, remembers everyone we know who has one, runs to them at the park, and then screams the second they get too close. But if a fence or slider door are in between her and dog, she is very intrigued by watching them. Right now she is learning to pray on her own, and these are words I treasure so much!
So this is me and my girls. In so many ways they are so alike, and in others they are as different as the color of their eyes. Life is about to change forever, but in the meantime, this is us.