spring is in the air! thank goodness! i am learning that spring is probably my favorite season. i always thought summer was my favorite season. but as the years go by, i am realizing that spring is actually my favorite. it's so refreshing, the spring air. after all the cold, gray, dreary days of winter in indiana. spring is so uplifting! it's like an instant energy and mood booster for me! i love it. and i think i realize that even more now that i have kids. they also LOVE to be outside. and it's so nice to be able to go outside and play with my girls. especially after being stuck inside during the cold winter months.

we went to the park not once, but twice today! it was awesome! the weather could not have been more beautiful. it was one of those days where i just wanted to take as many deep breaths of fresh air as i could and soak up as much of the spring air as possible! anyway...i got some really cute pics of the girls outside today. liv is big enough to sit in the baby swing at the park now. and she loved it! she grinned from ear to ear the entire time she was in there! anyway, here are those pictures.

mady mastered the BIG spiral slide at the park today. amazing what a difference a few months can make. in the fall she didn't quite have the trunk control to make it down this slide upright! today, she did it at least 52 times. all by herself!

here is mady pointing out the letters of the alphabet. she is doing so well with her letters now! she can recognize and name accurately several letters of the alphabet, and a couple numbers too!

here is mady watching an airplane. she tells me very confidently that this plane was going to the "A-port!"

olivia's first experience in the swing was a hit! she could not have been a happier baby!

we just got back from the park, and i got this picture of madyson, which i think is beautiful!

liv is also starting to crawl now. just a few feet at a time. but it won't be long before she is across the room...and then across the house! i say this all the time, but i just can't believe how big my baby is getting!

and this is just a funny picture i took of liv...looks like she's coming to eat the camera!

and this one is from a few weeks ago, but so cute i had to put it in! how can you not love this face?!

not too much news really. we have just been busy enjoying the warmer days of spring! i hope this weather continues! and i think the girls hope so too!

love,

shannon

do you ever feel like you're juggling? i'm not a juggler. i've never been able to master the art of juggling. yet at times in my life, i feel like i'm doing exactly that. sometimes i feel like i'm just juggling all these plates up in the air. and if i stop for a second, they might all come crashing down. and then i'd have to pick up all the pieces! and Lord knows i do NOT need one more mess to clean up! i have plenty of those, courtesy of our beautiful babies! at any rate, recent weeks have seemed somewhat like one of these juggling acts. i'm not sure why sometimes i feel so stressed for time and overwhelmed, and why other times, i am able to handle it all and still manage to find a little free time on my hands. but that is all i can offer as an explanation for my absence from blogging. juggling. i've been juggling. :)

this weekend, we are in columbus, ohio, visiting some of our best friends, the ganims! tony, laura and their son eli. eli was born just a few weeks before olivia, so they will have a great time playing together! astro is here attending a continuing education course with tony, so the girls and i tagged along for a little getaway from reality. and a break from juggling :) today, i am enjoying naptime. both girls are napping. and i am not at home, so i do not have to rush around to get a million things done while the girls sleep. naptime is free time for me today! free time is a luxury i rarely get at this point in my life. aaahhhhh. how sweet it is!

i will try to post soon with some new pictures, perhaps after our weekend away. until then, happy weekend!

and i must post a statement of gratitude...and apology...to my wonderful husband. in the midst of all this juggling, i sometimes go temporarily insane. i swear, i lose my mind. i lose all sense of reason, and the smallest thing is likely to set me off. which really isn't in my normal nature. and he takes it like a trooper. just offers to help. asks what he can do to help make me less stressed. thanks, babe. for being my hero. i love you!

love,
shannon