Gotcha!

Today is Katie's "Gotcha Day!"

The actual day only comes around every four years since it was on a Leap Year that we got our little one. We usually celebrate it on the 28th, but this year we can celebrate on the 29th.

Katie is a delight and is so much fun. She brings a lot of "pink" into our home, as well as love, helpfulness, squeals, giggles and the reminder to throw back your head and give in to the laughter. We are so thankful that God gave us our girl!

Look who's back!

Yesterday, Katie's Kaya doll arrived home from the doll hospital. Katie was thrilled to have her back. The American Girl hospital took really good care of her and she is now in tip-top shape! It was a fun Valentine's Day surprise to come home and find Kaya waiting for Katie. :-)

I know there have been a lot of pictures of Katie here on the blog lately. That is due to the fact that she is a LOT more cooperative than her brother when it comes to getting her picture taken! But, I WILL get some pictures of Grant. I just have to catch him at the right moment and he will let me click away. :-)

What to do on those cold days

We've had some pretty cold days here lately. The temperature has hovered around zero, often dipping below that. And when you factor in the wind chill...brrr!!! Grant and Katie love to play outside in the snow, but on these especially cold days, we all stay snug and warm inside.

Katie has been enjoying the time spent inside by playing with her new doll house. She received some birthday money and while we were wandering around at an antique store, spied this cute doll house. It came with all the furniture in it, too. Since it was on sale, Katie was able to put some birthday money toward it and Mommy and Daddy kicked in the rest. I have been noticing doll houses at antique stores now and I have seen that the price is usually a little more than what we payed, but never includes the furniture. The furniture pieces are all sold separately, so I think we got it for a song!

Watching Katie play with her new doll house and all the cute furniture reminds me of when I was a girl and played with doll furniture that had been my mom's when she was girl. How I wish I had kept those pieces! But, I sold them at a garage sale. :-( Some lady sure got a deal that day!

We have more cold days ahead and the doll house will be waiting. :-)

Kate is Eight!

Today is Katie's 8th birthday! We celebrated with cake and presents yesterday and today we are off to an indoor amusement park and Build-A-Bear for the rest of the birthday festivities. :-)

Everyone tells you when you first bring your baby home that the time will go by faster than you can imagine, and before you know it, they will be grown up. It is so true. Yesterday she was a chubby little baby and now she's a young lady, (well, most of the time ;-) ). I see the young woman she is becoming and it takes my breath away.

Kate is so thoughtful and notices when someone needs help. She always asks me if I need help, even when she doesn't really want to do whatever needs to be done. And, she is really helpful. Before long, I can probably turn over the running of our home to her! :-) She is my right-hand girl, there at my side. Kate is also one silly girl, who can laugh with the best of them. She is fun, smart, capable, caring, beautiful and lovely. Her Daddy and I are so thankful that the Lord brought this delightful little girl to us and that we get to be her parents!
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We are home now from a fun day of celebrating Katie's birthday. Katie and Grant had a blast on the rides they went on at the amusement park. They went on that ride with the swings that spin around, but they flew by too quickly for me to get any good pictures. After crashing into each other with bumper cars, and a few other rides, they were ready for lunch, which we had brought along. Then it was on to the long-awaited Build-A-Bear factory! The kids each chose a bear and went through the process of stuffing, cleaning and dressing them. They were so excited about all of it and played with those bears the rest of the evening, and they are sleeping with them now.:-) I'd say Katie had a pretty fun birthday and Grant made out pretty well, too. ;-)