IS's 2nd Birthday!

We got back from our trip just in time to celebrate IS turning 2 at the beginning of June! All 4 grandparents came for lunch and cake; we are just so thankful for this precious and sweet little guy! In the months before and since his birthday, he has become increasingly busy, verbal, and engaged with playtime with his brothers and sisters. He is making all kinds of sentences now and through the summer some of his favorite things to say were "Doot!" (as in "I want to do it!") and "Holt!" (and in, "I want to hold it!"). He is a combination of fearless physicality (like climbing, diving onto the furniture, and initiating wrestling matches with his brothers) and heart-melting affection and sweetness (like insisting on nightly rounds of hugs and kisses for us all and twirling his hair and cuddling like a champ). We finally got his hair cut a month or so after his birthday (see last pic below) and that made him look older instantly, but I am still hanging onto his bedtime routine and putting him down in the crib because I hate to give up that sweet time (which includes him reciting all my facial features in his sweet little voice)! He is a wonderful blessing to us all!

Washington DC

We kicked off our summer with an extra-special week for the whole family! The three boys spent several days with each set of grandparents and had tons of fun while T and I took the girls to DC for the week! It was an awesome week all-around, from the flights (the first in any of the girls' memories) to the sights and so much more! The following pictures show just a sample of our jam-packed days of touring, sight-seeing, and visiting dear friends we hadn't seen in years. In order: we toured the White House, SJ, LL and our friend A met some neat creatures at the Museum of Natural History, enjoying a picnic and jazz in the garden outside one of the Art museums with our friends from way back (the Parkers), me and the girls with my friend E and her daughter A at the National Zoo, A and the girls loved the ducks at the WWII memorial, A and girls at the Lincoln Memorial, with Earhart's plane and the National Air and Space Museum, touring the Capitol and getting a behind the scenes look at a reception room honoring Lincoln, outside the Capitol with it's dome under renovation, girls with the Washington Monument (which we toured!), and the girls enjoying their favorite treat in DC, shakes at Potbelly's. We are so thankful we got to enjoy this trip and the boys had such a super time with their grandparents that week! It was maximized memory-making for all of us!