While Ryan was Taking the Bar . . .

My Nana graciously flew the kids and I down to spend the week with her while Ryan was taking the Bar. It was my first flight alone with both kids and I couldn't have asked for a more smooth trip!

It was a big deal that Puppy Dog got to come with us (he's not allowed to leave the house). Rooke was very protective of him the whole trip and wanted to make sure he was safe

on the flight.
Nana is always great at having the exact right toys and things for kids to play with. She outdid herself on this visit with an alligator pool! Gretchen was fearless in the water, crawling and face planting in search of the toys.

Nana treated us to an Imax show about animals - Rooke's first movie!

We came back after naps to enjoy the children's museum part of the complex. This was part of the water area - water was dripping from above just enough that the babies had some to splash in - genius! I know, I know . . . my kids look alike.

And a visit with Nana would NOT be complete without stuffing our faces full of watermelon!

Thoughts on Daddy

This is a big week for Ryan. To offer a little comic relief, I interviewed Rooke about his daddy and thought I'd post some of the questions for all to enjoy. Inside the mind of our two-year-old:

"We love you, Daddy!!"

How old is Rooke?
two

How old is Daddy?
almost two

What’s your favorite color?
pink

What’s Daddy’s favorite color?
blue

What is your favorite thing to eat?
Playdough (said while laughing)

What’s Daddy’s favorite thing to eat?
BLUE playdough (said while laughing even more!)

What kind of car does Daddy drive?
HIS car

What kind of car do you want to drive?
Mommy’s car

What makes Daddy happy?
Greechy, Greech makes Daddy happy

What makes daddy special?
Feathers

Who does daddy love?
Greechy, Greechy, Greech

Who does Rooke love?
Greech Greechy Greech

What’s your favorite thing about Daddy?
to play with him

What does Daddy do to make you laugh?
He gets me . . . I say, “I’m going to get you Daddy” and then I run. I say to Daddy, “I’m okay," but I fall and I’m going to do it again.

When we're with Nana, what's Daddy going to do?
study

What are going to do when you see daddy again?
I want to say, “Hey Daddy, do you want to play with me?” and Daddy says, “Yes, I want to play with you.” and Daddy says to me, “What do you want to play with me?” and I will say “I want to play with small cars." That’s what Daddy tells me about all the special treats and things.

Wrapping Up

We are nearing the end of our crazy-study-for-the-Bar season and the kids and I stayed busier than ever. I hosted a VBS in our apartment. Two young women showed up each morning prepared to teach. It was a great set-up and a fantastic start to what I am sure will be an annual thing for the Payne family. Afternoons were spent at the park, wading pool, and a picnic with community group. It was a full week of fun and we CAN'T WAIT for Ryan to be released from the library so he can do these things with us!! "Study hard, Daddy!"

Gretchen lounged under the umbrella until I plopped her in the wading pool. Being the happy, content girl that she is - she loved it all.

Rooke's not a big fan of the wading pools (yet), but he was pleased to play with this dump truck while his feet dangled. By the end of our time, he was actually sitting in the water.

The comforter at the end of the bed made a nice "reading hole".

Puppy Dog is a "good guy". He needed to "be in a safe place" while Rooke was playing with his cars.

Seven Months

Thanks for the photo, Sarah!

Our Baby Girl is seven months old today. Seven! How are we already a full seven months away from December 22nd?! Gretchen is an amazing, happy, content, little girl. I am beyond grateful to be her mommy. We had a rough start, but even during the hardest days, her happy disposition shone through. This girl loves to smile! She rarely fusses and is pretty good with her brother's "gentle" touches. She is already more aggressive than Rooke ever was and is determined to get what she wants when she sees it - usually one of her brother's sacred cars or trucks. She gives great cuddles (and by great, I mean the kind where she rests her heavy head on my shoulder . . . I melt) just after she wakes up and right before she goes to sleep, but other than that - she's pretty active. She whines a "mama" sound when she's hungry and is happiest when her family are all together. We all get excited when she wakes up! I can't wait to see what the next seven months bring with my precious daughter. What a source of joy Gretchen is for our family!

Fun with Friends

I haven't done a great job at documenting our last week with the camera, probably because I've been trying to enjoy the moments with my kids and/or Gretchen is full-on crawling now so I can't really just plop her down and go at it with the camera.


I managed to catch a few shots of fun with friends . . .

A 2-year birthday party . . . Gretchen is stealing the Birthday Boy's toy. What can I say? She's a woman who knows what she wants!

This has been my view on many occasions this past week. How blessed am I?!

We met some friends from our toddler class at a nearby park. The boys had fun "roaming" together.

Digging with James in his sand "box".

We were treated with a visit from the Elias family on their way to Oregon! My family lived down the street from Katie growing up and her brother was one of my best friends. It was wonderful to see her again and meet the men in her life. Thank you for stopping by, Elias clan. It was great catching up.

3rd Annual Chinese Festival

Last Saturday, we kidnapped Ryan from the library and headed to the International District for the Payne's third annual visit to the Chinese Festival. (follow the links for a look back at 2008 & 2009) It's really not that great as far as festivals go, but it reminds us of life in China and so we love it!

One of the churches had a booth set up and were offering face painting. Rooke agreed to have his hand painted and picked a boat.

Ah . . . how I love bubble tea . . .

. . . but this year I got to share and introduce my son to bubble tea goodness.

We opted for Chinese dumplings for dinner. I had been to this little hole-in-the-wall with a friend last month and was excited to go back with the family. Rooke insisted on using chopsticks.

I was proud of his diligent effort.

Learning to Crawl

She's pretty determined to get this crawling thing down . . .
Gretchen at 6 1/2 months:

Rooke's Language

Rooke is naturally a reserved little guy, but at home, he drops his guard and shows off his silly side (and then I show it to the world!). Here he is singing a "Gretchen song" - interpretations are welcome!

Staying Busy but Missing Daddy

I won't post the countdown until Ryan takes the Bar because my husband looks at this blog and I would hate to remind him of exactly how much time he has left for studying. He's working so hard. And there is a countdown. It's in my head. Ryan and I are working overtime in our respective "jobs" and we will all be grateful to see the end of this short-lived season. While we miss being with Daddy, the kids and I have stayed busy . . . playing with James and Averie, swimming (or sitting by the pool) with Audrey, library storytimes and concerts, a special park playdate for Rooke with Erin, and silly stuff at home:

We ate an entire watermelon in two days!

Thanks, Averie, for teaching us your "swimming" game. We love it! Especially the part about needing to to be in your undies/diaper because you can't swim in your clothes! "Jumping into the pool" has actually taught Rooke how to jump and land with two feet - yeah for improved gross motor skills!

She loved the fresh peach slices, and it was a good thing I had her in just a diaper . . . .

. . . that's what was left after I pulled her out - peach juice! (yes, it IS peach juice!)

The kids and I walk to Rite Aid together most Sundays to take advantage of their crazy good deals. Are you ready for this? I made $4.64, after taxes, coupons, and rebates, for buying all of this. That's right . . . I made a PROFIT for purchasing all of these fantastically practical products (Gretchen loves the remote!). It just doesn't get much better than that for this deal-lovin', frugal momma.

Ever the observer.

Our Beautiful Gretchen

Here are some of the pictures Ashley took of Gretchen. . . . I just adore this little girl.

Gretchen and Ashley's daughter obviously having a great time together!