D to the C, part deux

(Click for a full-size version of the picture)
I LOVE when we fly somewhere and I can see and identify the scenery below! As we skirted the DC area on our way to Baltimore, I was able to snap this pic.
Look center-left for the Washington Monument, go horizontally to the right along the Mall, and you can see the Capitol Building and Dome about 2/3 of the way across the pic on the right.



We took Anna's "Little Monkey" with us and sent the kids some photo-texts throughout our trip to keep them involved. Here is Little Monkey on our Peanuts Flight (the seatbelts light was off...)
From Baltimore, we caught an Amtrak train.

The train system is pretty efficient here, but for some reason our train was delayed for nearly an hour! We didn't mind waiting, though, because after 90+ degree Texas weather, the 75+ degree Baltimore breeziness was quite a delight! The quick 30 min train ride seemed so much shorter after the wait.
(The other alternatives were the regional train- not as reliable or fast -, the taxi - expensive and slower, rented car - ditto, or the superfast Acela train, which was a GREAT option had we not been on a budget)

We arrived at Union Station to meet our friend Nate. I LOVE the architecture of this building.

Union Station has a lot of great shoppes and a pretty decent food court, so we grabbed a bite to eat before Nate took us for a drive.

D to the C, part 1

Knowing that our anniversary would take place close to my travel restriction point of pregnancy, we scheduled a fun trip for a few weeks prior.

Scott knew that I would love to visit our nation's Capitol, and since he had only been there once before (and hadn't paid a lot of attention, hee hee), he suggested that we go there on our trip. I heartily agreed! What a great suggestion!

We flew "for peanuts" to Baltimore, caught a train, then met our good friend Nate, who generously had us stay with him and his family in a D.C. suburb.

The best part of the trip (for me) was that, having visited there before, we were not under time pressure to see everything that there was to see quickly. We got to take our time, meet up with people, and just enjoy ourselves. (Scott would tell you he's glad that I was 6 1/2 months pregnant, since it slowed me down a little) :)

Scott's favorite part of the trip (first impression-wise) was the Dyson Air Blade hand dryer we encountered while enjoying a delicious meal in Chinatown one night. Yes, that's right, a hand dryer. Wanna see it?
On a way less superficial level, I think he'd tell you honestly that he thoroughly enjoyed the trip for the same reasons I did, but I will tell you he researched the Air Blade possibilities for our church when he came back! :)

We definitely decided that we'd have to do the trip again before long, and would love to take our kiddos with us the next time around! Huge thanks to Mimi for keeping them that week!

In future installments of D to the C, I'll show you some cool pics of things we saw!

Seen and Heard at the McDonaldspot, toddler edition

You know I have to blog about what's going on.

...and what's going on right now is potty training.

Yes, potty training.

Don't look at me in that tone of voice...

So, we hear lots of adamant things being said:

"I don't WANT to go poo-poo."

"It's GOOD to push out poo-poo."

"(Insert name of family or friend here) goes poo-poo every day. Everyone needs to push out poo-poo." Yes, you may have been used in one of our examples. Sorry.

Screams and moans as the inevitable begins to happen and the urgency becomes scary. (so far, this is every time. We just look at each other in helplessness and frustration and wonder if she'll ever get used to this.)

Mid-progress: "I. want. ICE CREAM. now."

prior to any progress being made: "I need some shows." We're not the only ones who put the training potty in front of the tv, right?

And the best, or at least we hope that it's a good motivator:

"if I push out poo-poo, I can have (insert name of patiently waiting Schleich animal who has been camped out on the mantel for days on end), right?"

Hoffs Drawlar

For those of you who continue (like us) to be lost when it comes to LOST, this title's for you!

(unscramble the title and it spells "Flash Forward")

Thanks for tolerating all of the flashbacks as I attempt to get caught up to the present!

It's time for an Abby update!

Last week's doctor appointment began with the doc (whom I LOVE, have I mentioned that already?) asking how things were going, measuring me, and saying "Oh, you poor thing" with a smile. Now, most of you know I've been measuring ahead of schedule because of the more than generous-sized "swimming pool" I've provided for Abby somehow. (extra amniotic fluid)

She confirmed that I'm still measuring full-term, but she made the comment that I'm not gaining size any longer, because it appears Abby has dropped. (aka, moved downward in preparation for birth, usually happens in the last few weeks or so) It also appears that for the time being, at least, Abby is now situated properly: head down! Before we all celebrate, realize that she still has plenty of room to move around and flip again if she's feeling ornery.

I'm scheduled for a 36 wk ultrasound in a week and a half, so we'll know more by then. Just wanted to flash forward and give you an update!

Now back to your regularly scheduled flashbacks... :)

We're so proud!

Cue graduation processional...

Twice as old...

For the only year of his life, our strapping young boy is twice as old as his sister! That's right, Caleb turned six this May!

It was a momentous day! We began the day with birthday breakfast and ended it with special day at school!

Caleb was quite expressive during breakfast and present-opening time!

Then Anna and I met Mimi and Pawpaw at Caleb's school to surprise him with lunch! He was able to choose 2 classmates to eat with us at the special table. We had lots of fun!

Cute boy, yikes Mama put on some makeup.

Caleb and his friend "E", Caleb's cheesy smile

Caleb and his friend "K", again with the cheesy smile

Isn't she a good little helper?

Saying Goodbye for the summer...

Anna completed a year in her "school" in mid-May, and I can't say enough wonderful things about her two teachers! One is a college student, and the other is the wife of a local minister.

We love you Kalenda and Amanda!

(last names not included for privacy, of course)

I'm so thankful for teachers who bless our children as examples of God's love!

My sweet girl is 3!

We celebrated Anna's birthday in mid May with our traditional big birthday breakfast of the birthday girl's choice. We followed up the festive feast with gifts galore and playing with presents.

Then our tri-year teenybopper, her big brother, and proud papa were plumb tuckered out. We had another family fiesta in the works for the afternoon, so it's a good thing the group grabbed some zzzz's. Upon arrival at the glad grandparents' home, they got to give our girl more gifts: terrific training wheels/trike and a jolly reversible jigsaw puzzle. We capped off the day with a delicious dinner and a cute chocolate chip cookie cake.



'Twas a mighty magnificently memorable moment, my friends. :)

Splash Day

Caleb's school has a splash day in mid May. Each grade level is responsible for bringing cases of bottled water and a specific type of item relating to the hotdog lunch that some wonderful parents grill outside. The festivities begin with a Field Day and end with watery wildness. :)

Caleb loved every minute, and the day was mostly overcast (a rare treat), so it wasn't blazing hot!

Oh, and did I mention red snowcones?

Definitely click on these pictures to get a better look at the expressions as he comes down the water slide for the first time! = o

Musical Notes

The first weekend of May brought a piano recital! Caleb enjoys taking lessons from Mrs. Karen, and one cool thing I love about the recitals is that they take place in a nursing home instead of being just a show for family. What a great way to bring a little ministry and joy into the lives of some lovely folks who seldom get to interact with young families!

Player on Deck... Caleb's up next!
Daddy has the Flip Video ready.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is Caleb. He has three songs to play for you!

Caleb whipping out some "My Son John" ... deedle deedle dumpling!

I'm not sure what happened to the pic of the middle song.
Finishing up with some "Love Somebody" (...yes I do...)

Taking a bow after a fine performance

Caleb has completed a year of piano lessons, and he has really taken to the process of learning new songs and skills. Granted, this doesn't happen entirely void of distraction and occasional frustration, but overall, Payno (Anna's word) lessons are fun!

T Party

(updates from the past... We've made it to the end of April!)

Not tea party (as in previous post) but Tparty - we had a wonderful opportunity to have a visit from our Tennessee/Kentucky clan: Travis and Licia!

Their visit just so happened to fall in conjunction with Travis' birthday, so, of course, we wanted to celebrate our favorite Uncle-in-law! :D There was good Italian food (fitting!) and more importantly, great company!

These first pictures are my own, but later on, you'll see some pictures by my two budding photographers who love, love, love the chance to take and see digital pictures!





Photos by Caleb:






Photos by Anna (with a little assistance):





Then some post-dessert silliness:

She's on the loose!

Tea Party

Boston style, not Princess style...

Many of you know that I keep a close eye on politics, that I care a great deal about our country, and that I have strong conservative sentiments about what makes government effective: small size, limited controls, fiscal responsibility, championing morality and the value of human life, encouraging individuals to excel as opposed to feeding a sense of entitlement and complacency.

When tax day rolled around and we as a nation were already looking at an irresponsible spending plan that promised to bring debt to generations to come and higher taxes (even hidden ones) as a result, I took note of the fact that there was a Tea Party planned in our general vicinity to peacefully show frustration with the direction of our government's leadership and also support of responsible fiscal policy and the values that make our nation distinct.

I consider myself informed, but not an activist; I had not intended to participate, but to monitor whatever information came out after the fact. We happened to be out and about that day, so before things got going with the event, we visited the site. It was a pretty day.


I ended up staying for the first 20 min. to see what would happen. Mimi kept the kids in the car watching a video. I was impressed with the diversity of the crowd and the balance of strong patriotic feelings and respectful discontent held by the participants. The event was scheduled to last 3 or 4 hours, and even as early as 20 min. following the beginning of the event, there were at least 500 there. Here are some pictures!

Families representing many cultures and economic backgrounds...
Many people carrying copies of the Constitution, homemade signs, flags, and teabags.

One girl's sign read "6 years old and already in debt".

This soldier was wearing his Camo hat and Squadron T-shirt from his service during the war in Iraq.

A speaker who facilitated discussion, celebration of the founding values of the country, and introduced other notable local speakers. Local news reported a ceremony at the end where the symbolic bags of "tea" were tossed into the Bay (and reeled back in to support stewardship of the environment, of course).
Let me encourage you out there to pay better attention to what is going on in our nation! It only takes a moment or two to call your Representative or Senator's office to register your opinion on upcoming legislation. They respond better to phone calls than emails or web-generated form submissions. Call even if you support your Congressman's proclaimed stance... they need encouragement as well as dissent!

Future generations will thank us for being involved and not just watching as things happen! Our liberties (read: religious expression, etc.) and our finances (read: not just income, but ability to give to ministry, missions, and charity) will be most certainly be affected --either preserved or damaged-- by decisions made by those who have been elected to represent us.