New Little Brother

While we were snowed in at my sister's house, Emma and Stevie were such good helpers with baby Johnny. They helped to feed him, talk to him, play with him, and just take care of him in general. Johnny loved them just as much. He loved playing with the two of them and especially all of their hugs and kisses. Emma let me know she didn't want him to leave and told her mom she wanted Johnny to stay forever.

Fran said, "You know he's your cousin, right?"

Emma replied, "No, my little brother. Keri said it was okay."

We had a fun little photo shoot in front of the tree. Johnny was getting tired of the flash, little Stevie had some trouble sitting still, but I think Emma could definitely pass for Johnny's big sister. He loves her and would probably be happy never having to say goodbye either.

Congratulations

We wanted to say how happy we are that Brad's brother Ryan and his wife Linda had their baby girl this morning. We're glad everything went well, and are so excited for their family.

Deep Freeze 2008

Despite the FREEZING temperatures and persistent snow, we've been enjoying our trip to Washington. Seattle has definitely become a winter wonderland this last week, and the snow has not let up since we got here. Johnny and I flew into Seattle on Thursday night and have had so much fun meeting baby Henry and seeing cousins and other family. Brad needed to finish with his finals on Friday and had a flight to join us on Saturday night, but his flight became a casualty of all these bad storms, and he was rebooked for Sunday afternoon.

My sister Fran who lives nearby, invited Johnny and I to spend the night at her house Saturday. Emma and Stevie were very excited about baby Johnny coming over, and we all had fun playing together while watching the snow pile up outside. It didn't take too long for the road to get closed, and it is still closed tonight. Unfortunately for us, that means even though Brad made it safely to my parents' house, Johnny and I were unable to head back there to meet him. We're sad we can't see him tonight, but look forward to being together again tomorrow.

We're just glad this wasn't us:

Yes, that really happened in Seattle the day Brad was supposed to fly here. Yes, most of Seattle is comprised of hills which have now turned into icy dooms of death, and yes, that is why I am staying safe and not trying to head back to my parents house tonight. Sorry again Brad, but it's just making us more excited to see you!

I Knew He Would Do It

Remember how Brad had to take the FE test in October? Well, we found out some wonderful news:

HE PASSED

We're proud of you Brad. Let's celebrate.

Laughing Baby

Johnny loves laughing. I promise he is not crying, even though it kind of sounds like he is. He was laughing his head off until I started taping him and he got a little camera-shy. We love this little guy and are grateful for the joy he brings to our family.

The Lanster

She lived a long and happy life. Her favorite things included: watching out the living room window, laying in the sun, begging for food at the table, and waking my dad up in the middle of the night. Lani loo, you will be missed.

Sweet Ride

Growing up, we weren't a minivan family, an SUV family, we were a station-wagon family.

Picture this beauty in white, and you get my mom's sweet ride she drove until I was in Junior High. I love it. I miss it. I'm sure my mom doesn't.

Brad's Favorite Place

When it comes to restaurants, one of Brad's favorites is Tucanos. We went there a few weeks ago to eat and claimed it was because Stephen was in town and to celebrate Johnny turning 6 months old, but really we'd just use any excuse to eat there. It was lots of fun and of course very delicious. Baby Johnny seemed really excited to be there too, as you can see in the picture. He did get a little sad when Brad told him he was too little to eat the food. He didn't even want to let go when Brad tried to take the menu away from him:

He quickly got over the disappointment and he was all smiles when Dad pulled him onto his lap to play. He's always such a happy baby, we love him so much!

We Love Uncle Stevie

Stephen came to visit us again and we were all so excited to see him. We had lots of fun with him, but somehow I ended up with just one good picture of Stephen and Johnny during the visit.


Thanks for visiting Stevie, and we look forward to seeing you at Christmas!