Abby's 1st Birthday Party

Life is Just a Chair of Bowlies

Aren't they adorable?! My dearest friend Wendy made all of these oh-so-cute cherry dresses for the girl's birthdays! I LOVE cherries on little dresses. Wendy, of course, knew this so she found some cute, bright cherry fabric and started sewing away! Now Anna, Naomi, and Abigail have their first matching outfits (homemade nonetheless!)...definitely good attire for a photo op! Thank you Wendy!

Abby, Abby, and More Abby

Okay...someone complained about me not posting any pics of Abby from the Renaissance Fair. Was I just treating her as a typical 3rd child (often ommitted accidentally!)? Of course not, I was doing her a favor! None of her photos were very becoming to put in mildly! So here are a few new ones that are definitley blog worthy! And it is only fair that she has a blog all to herself since Sunday is her FIRST birthday!!!! It's hard to believe she will be 1...and that there is no little sister to attend her birthday party! All of which I am grateful for :) Abigail is a joy. She loves to laugh and be hung upside down and other daring feats. She just started to walk and does well until she repeatedly shrieks in delight and then loses her balance. She loves to talk with her favorite words being "Night Night" and "Bye Bye". Happy Birthday Abigail! We love you!


Abby exploring her new talent

Yes, We are Still Alive...and Reliving the Renaissance

I have been cameraless for awhile...so now FINALLY, here are some recent pics and a more recent update on this crazy circus we call the Irwin Family!

- Our kitchen, which has been "under construction" for the past three years, is now almost complete! Pinch me, I might be dreaming. (Thanks JOE!)

- Naomi just turned two which means we now have an 11 month old and two 2 year olds! Yikes! And I do have to say we have heard the word "mine" a lot more since Naomi entered the toddler years!

- Abigail is about to turn 1 next weekend and Anna is not far after her and will be 3. We will have a 1, 2, and 3 year old! This works out well for when strangers ask their ages...no need to think about it, I just start counting!

- I am about to start a summer bible study with the girls at my Teen Mother of Preschooler's Group. I'm excited! And Kid's Club with the Afghans is coming to a close for the school year.

- Ryan is still working as a lab technician, isolating mouse DNA and other weird activities involving mice. Squeak, Squeak!

- And one last thing, something funny that Anna said (there are so many these days as she is turning into a little person who forms sentences but doesn't quite get everything yet!)- We were in the van on the way home and a man was crossing the street. Anna said "I don't like mans. (momentary pause) I like ladies." Ryan said "Hey...I am man". Anna looked disturbed and was then quiet for awhile. She is our empathetic girlie so I think she felt bad! Another quick Anna comment- Ryan's mom was showing Anna their new house. Apparently there is an old rooster coop that they are planning to convert into a clubhouse for our girls. So Grandma told Anna "This is Anna's house". Anna looked inside and went in a little bit. She came back out and said "There is poop in Anna's house."

So that is a quick update...here are some photos of a Renaissance Fair we went to on Sunday with my mom, grandma, Steve, Tara, Emma, and our girls-



My mom got Anna a princess skirt and Anna LOVED it. It was such a joy to watch her. All throughout the day, we would be walking or looking at something and then it would dawn on her that she was wearing her princess skirt. She would immediately stop whatever she was doing and start dancing, without a care in the world. What fun to be a little girl and what a delight to witness it!


at a jousting event...unfortunately he did not make it out.









Aren't they all so cute?!

Well, I guess I will bid ye farwell until next time!

My Top Ten

Ryan and I were talking and began evaluating our TOP 10 Purchases, so just in case you care...here they are (in no particular order)

Dana:
1. Pampered Chef ice cream scoop
2. Hoover Floormate
3. Reiker Heater fan
4. Ultravection oven
5. Notebooks I buy from Walmart that I use to organize my life
6. all of my scrapbooking stuff
7. Penway spiral bound notebooks from Walgreens for my spiritual journals, college ruled
8. Breathe Right nose strips to use at night when I have a cold
9. DVR (Tivo) to use on our tv
10. My kitchen table, my living room curtains, our African dresser, our mahogany cabinet

Conclusion- I take joy in the little things in life or anything that makes my life easier

Ryan:
1. Our House
2. Dana's engagement ring
3. Reiker heater ceiling fan
4. Dell laptop
5. Ultravection oven
6. Soda
7. High Speed Internet
8. Xbox 360, games, and accessories
9. Table saw
10. Our van
11. IPAQ personal computer (yes, I realize that this is #11, but when has Ryan ever followed the rules?)

Conclusion- Ryan pretty much loves anything that will plug in...or is so technically advanced that it doesn't actually NEED to be plugged in!

Discovery Toys Playdate

This morning I had a Discovery Toys Playdate! Lots of new toys and lots of kiddos. I wasn't exactly expecting it be a ton of fun with so many people crammed into my little house but it definitely was! My favorite part was watching my girls explore all of the toys. It was a great way to see what types of toys they liked. Anna and Naomi ended up playing with toys that I never would have picked out for them. Anna's Fav: stacking cups These are a Discovery Toys staple. I always thought they were so simple that they wouldn't be very much fun. Apparently I was wrong because Anna spent most of her time with these cups! I guess I know one of her birthday presents already! Naomi's fav: A Hammer Away boat thingy Go figure Naomi's would include a hammer! It is a toy boat with lots of holes for balls to go rolling through down the ramp. Another of Naomi's favorites that we already have is the Toddler Marbleworks. Every kid no matter their age seems to LOVE it. We got it as a gift and I groaned because I have played with the marbleworks for older kids and I can't do it. It confuses me...so many pieces, so much chaos! I can't imagine how difficult it would be for me to put it together after having three kids! (it seems that my brain cells now rest in the single digits) Luckily, the toddler version stays in one piece and is easy-peasy (sp?). Abby's Fav: undeclared She just sucked on everything in sight.

I'm leaving my show open until Monday or so. If anyone is interested in ordering anything, you can browse the website at http://www.lauriestoys.com/ Just let me know if there is something you want or if you have a question and I can talk to Laurie about it. When you go to her website, if you click on the Spring Sale icon on the left hand side, there is group of toys that are all 50% off right now. Some of them are worth checking out!

Perspectives

I had kid's club tonight with some Afghan children from our neighborhood. I was driving a family home and they were talking about their recent trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan. The 7 year old and his little 5 year old brother following suit said in broken English with a thick accent "I hate America." I asked why to which they said "There are police here." And then "There is fighting here." At which point, I just laughed to myself. Such irony.