Jack Hanna

On Saturday we went to Cedarville University to see Go Wild with Jack Hanna. I've always really liked Jack and all his animal shows so this was probably more fun for me than Claire! Claire still really enjoyed seeing all the animals!!

Claire waiting patiently before the show began!

Claire made some friends with the little girls sitting near us. They had beach balls floating around the crowd and the girls snagged one of the balls to play with!

Looking cute!

Claire started clapping with the audience when Jack Hanna was introduced!


A VERY rare Clouded Leopard. She was beautiful and there are only a couple hundred left in the world. Soooo sad...


A cute little armadillo. He was so fast and he kept trying to get off the stage! Claire thought this was funny!


A small alligator. Reptiles are not my favorite!


This little guy WAS a favorite! The penguin was adorable as he waddled across the stage. When Claire saw him come out she said, "Ahhhhh". My thought exactly!

This was a humongous albino python! Albino snakes and animals are rarely seen in the wild for obvious reasons! We actually have an albino squirrel that lives in one of our trees. He's so cute!! Much cuter than this albino guy!

A beautiful blue macaw! These birds are worth up to $40,000. Because of the high value, the macaw (and other exotic birds) is a popular underground and illegal export, only behind the illegal sale of drugs.

The extremely slow moving sloth. They don't have the ability to stand or walk. They have to hang upside down. Interesting! We learned so much!

This flamingo was a trip. He ran back & forth across the stage flapping his wings. Claire said, "That bird is silly, Mommy!". She was right!

Special Times!

Just some recent pictures of the visits with Claire & Anna's Great Grandparents. Every time we go, I always wonder if it will be the last time we see them. They are all in their early eighties so you just never know. I always try to get at least a few pictures from our time with them. The time we spend with them is truly special!

Claire & Anna with Nanny Grey & Grandpa Stephens.

Claire was really interested in Papa Stephens chest hair. In this picture he was showing her his hairy chest and if you know my Grandpa, you know he has A LOT!!!

Papa Stephens with his little girls! Nothing makes him happier than seeing them! It's so neat to see his face light up when we come to visit. It's priceless and worth the effort to get them there!


I love how Claire is looking up at her Papa Stephens in this picture!


I don't know what it is, but Claire and Papa Stephens have a special bond. There is such an obvious connection between them. This is such a special picture of them laughing and playing together. This just summarizes their relationship. I hope she always remembers him and how much he loves her and how she makes him smile!


Claire & Anna love Buffy, their little Poodle!

We go over to Great Grandma McDowell's at least once a month for our lunch date! We had a really nice visit with her yesterday! The girls really do so well at both Great Grandparents' homes.

Playing at Grandma McDowell's!

Sweet picture of Anna & Grandma!


After our visit with Grandma McDowell, I took the girls to my parents house. They babysat them while I went to the hospital to work for a couple hours!!

BLOCKS!

In the last couple months Claire has really gotten into building blocks. She has always really enjoyed stacking things, especially wooden blocks. Her stacking record is now 17 one inch wooden blocks! She spends long periods of time building towers or houses... even castles! She is quite creative in her architectural designs!! Ben & I both enjoy helping her with this fun activity!!

Funny face!! What a silly girl!

In the midst of her masterpiece!


Quite an elaborate structure, huh!?!


It now appears that Anna's sole purpose in life is to knock Claire's towers over. This does not make her big sister very happy. I'm confident that Claire's response only adds to the excitement for Anna... uh oohhh!! Have the wars begun?

Ohhhhh Nooooo.... SNOW!!!!

Let me just start out by saying... I MISS SUMMER! Yes, I really do. The thoughts of being stranded in the house this winter makes me want to cry. I loved spring & summer (and even most of the fall) when we could just go outside anytime and swing and take walks and go to the park or the pool. Although, I can appreciate all four seasons, I just wish that winter didn't last half the year. AND... it does in Ohio. YUCK! Snow is fine around Christmas, but then I've had enough. I should've been born in San Diego!! Here's hoping for a mild and very quick winter. Is it only November?????
Anyway... we got quite a dusting of snow today. We did venture out this morning for Claire's paint class at the rec, but we've just been hanging out in the house. Claire has asked several times to go outside. It'll be better to take her out in the snow when it's freezing. Right now it's just kind of wet and muddy. Sophie was a mess when she came in from her 30 second pottie break. Poor dog with no body fat!! The cold is hard on Greyhounds, too!

Pictures of the dusting in our front yard. It was pretty...

Claire painted! Normally we do our messy crafts outside, but not today!






There is most definitely a story here. When I was setting up Claire's painting project, Anna made her way to the bathroom (normally I leave the bathroom door closed because she and Sophie enjoy the toilet bowl). I am still trying to figure out how she managed to get into the tub without breaking her neck or without even a thud. I had to go looking for her and she was in the tub, behind the shower curtain, playing with her bath toys. She is an adventurous little girl, alright. My little dare devil.


So proud of herself!!

Funny Claire-isms!

This post is really for my benefit. I know most people don't really care about the silly things kids say (especially when the kids aren't your own!). I just don't want to forget these funny things!!

As Anna has become more verbal in the last couple months, Claire has started doing a lot of "baby talk". I've noticed this especially when she is being disciplined and I ask her a question, she responds in gibber jabber. Ben and I really get on her about not talking baby talk. We tell her that she is a big girl and she needs to talk like a big girl. Well anyway... last week my mom took some video of her and asked Claire what her name is and she said "Ga Ga". Now when she's being silly and someone asks her what her name is she says "Ga Ga". So, yesterday she said my name is Ga Ga and baby Anna's name is Gu Gu. I thought that was so silly and didn't really think much about it until today when she started doing the whole "my name is Ga Ga and Anna's name is Gu Gu", she proceeded to tell me that Mommy's name Gu Ga. I laughed and asked her "Well... what is Daddy's name then?" Without hesitation she said, "Daddy's name is Ga Gu". How silly is this girl and where in the world did she come up with these crazy nicknames for our family??? Ohhhh... the mind of a two year!

Another quick story... yesterday I was reading a book we've read a million times that has a cat in it and when I turned it to the page with the cat Claire said, "Ahhhh look at that kitty cat Mommy. I want a kitty cat to live in my house." She was VERY serious. I thought she would forget about it, but she has asked several times since then for a kitty cat. How would she know to ask for a pet? I explained that Daddy is deathly allergic to kitty cats and that if we got a cat that would make Daddy very sick. She said "Daddy be okay, he take mecine (medicine) and be all better! She cracks me up, that little girl!

Kentucky 2008

Every year my mom's side of the family meets in Paintsville, Kentucky for a family get together. Most of us live in the Dayton/Xenia/Cedarville area, but my great grandparents lived in Kentucky before moving to Ohio when my Grandma was a girl. Our family actually still owns some of their land in Eastern Kentucky. The funny thing is my dad was actually born in the hospital across from the hotel we stay at in Paintsville! What a small world!!
Anyway... we had a great time! My mom, Claire and I drove together and stayed in the same room. Ben stayed home with Anna, so it was a great girls weekend away! Claire had so much fun with all her cousins! We can't wait until next year!

Claire with her cousin Lauren! Claire really loves big girls right now!

Caroline, Lauren and Claire

Scott & Shawn playing in their ping pong tournament. I do believe Shawn won!!


These two had a blast playing and EATING together. They ate so much junk (suckers being their preferred treat), but it was a fun weekend to do things we normally don't do!



The hotel was decorated for Christmas and Claire really enjoyed all the festive decorations!



My grandmother was from a family of nine kids! There are eight daughters and one son. Sadly, Sammy (the only son) died in a tragic airplane accident when he was in his mid thirties. Six of the eight sisters where in Kentucky so we took the opportunity to get a picture with our Aunts. I love this picture!

The Aunts from L to R: Betty, Lois, Mary, Evelyn, Karen Sue, and Joyce (my Grandma and Magdalene didn't make it).

Catherine... what a sweet baby! She did so well with such a change in her routine!

My cousin Cindie put together a wonderful kids program! It was so much fun to watch the kids sing and dance! The little kids where even included!!

The LITTLE kids! Ahleya, Claire, Caroline, Sam and Ariel. They were too cute!!

Mommy & her girl!

Some of the family hanging out! My mom, Tim, Beth, Karen Sue, and Kristen.

Claire and Caroline in their costumes for the kids program! They looked so cute watching the big kids!

Claire loved ringing the bells during the program. Connor helped her (sort of!!!).

We spent hours in the pool and hot tub at the hotel! Claire had so much fun going back and forth between the two (torture for me going from hot to cold, cold to hot....). She is still asking to get in the hot tub!