Hi Aunt Jen!

Sis-in-law Jen is in town for the weekend (yay!) and got to meet Erin for the first time this afternoon. Erin loves her Aunt Jen--she displayed her affection by promptly snuggling up to Aunt Jen and falling asleep. :-) Rachael was excited to see Aunt Jen too--took Rach a few minutes to warm up but was a full-blown chatter box in no time!

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Erin woke up for a few pics with the girls:

Aunt Jen and Erin

Erin, Jen, Rachael and Kristine

Rachael being goofy!

Glad you're here Jen!

A Cure for the Crankies

Erin is developing a pattern of mid-afternoon crankiness. Around 1pm she starts whining for no discernible reason....not crying, just waaa this and ehhh that. Not hungry, not wet. I think she just wants to share her general feelings of mid-afternoon discontent.

Yesterday the mid-afternoon crankies came on just as I was five minutes into my quick re-organization of Rachael's closet. Erin had been peacefully sitting next to me when the crankies took hold--BAM! So, I set her on Rachael's bed and put Rachael's 'snuggle blankie' on her while I hunted down a pacifier. LIKE MAGIC, Erin was quickly settled. Within minutes, she was fast asleep on big sister's bed. I took off snuggle blankie for a minute to snap this pic:

Quilt in picture was made by David's Aunt Ellen for our wedding 5 years ago, and our friend Steph gave Erin that cute purple butterfly dress. Props where props are due!

Anyhoo, I think Erin has already developed an attachment to big sister! :-)

Finally, I *have* to share this pic...my friend Denise from work gave Erin this outfit and Erin's now big enough to wear it. It's A-DORABLE! Check it out:


The little sock-shoes that go with it are my favorite part. Thanks Denise!

We are not too Good for Child Labor

That's right folks...we're starting our kids early. You may recall last year when we had Rachael help us move eight yards of mulch. Evidence (August 2008...she loved Mount Mulchmore):

This year, we figured Rachael was old enough to start pulling her weight with lawn maintenance. She is, after all, 2.5 years old! Her mower is MUCH cooler than mine...hers blows bubbles! Look at how hard she's concentrating on her task:

She doesn't seem to mind being put to work. :-) Check out this smile:

Hi Erin!

A month overdue, I know, but:

Welcome Erin Susanna!

Erin arrived on May 14th at 5:19pm...she weighed 8lbs 7oz (just like her sister!) and was 21 inches long (unlike her sister, who was only 18 inches). Check out this pretty little girl:

Big Sis checking Erin out

It's amazing how FAST the first weeks go by. Of course, when it's 3am and we're responding to one of Erin's meal calls, it seems like the hours drag by slowly. But I cannot believe it's been over a month already! My boss called yesterday to discuss my return-to-work date, so time is really going by quickly!

More to come as I find minutes here and there for more pics and stories :)