Picture Catch-Up Part 1

I am still struggling with the new camera and new computer but trying to be patient.  Here is a huge surge of pictures that I found on the computer.  Next up, pictures from my old camera and IPHONE!  Here is Avery and the little roll on her leg.  Yes, it seems like she has just one roll most of the time.   

 Some pictures of the boys rock climbing one weekend.  Geoff is so good about taking Jack and Wyatt to the gym and they play games:  here is Wyatt trying not to "fall" into the water (the mat) where Geoff is the shark!

And they rope up and climb to the top:

And they boulder:

And then Geoff works on strengthening his fingers with some added "resistance".  No thank you very much.

Group pic...it is cold in that gym sometimes hence the hats!

I think their ice-cream trip tradition after climbing helps motivate them as well.

I look at these pictures and so love the small everyday things.  Here are a bunch of little joys we are enjoying. 

Big brothers.

 Paintings the boys bring home from school.   

This one...

...explained by this.

Milestones.  The boys and Avery on the day Avery turned six months old. 

 Little hands.  

Building Dr. Seuss-looking snow forts during our random-surprise-you-never-know-what-you're going-to-get-in-the-spring-weather.

Pony rides.  Yee haw! 

Lego helicopters. 

And lego "walkers" (from Star Wars) and building runways with legos.  I thought this one by Wyatt was great...it even held up his lego passenger plane.

Big wrinkle-your-eyes-kind of smiles. 

Staying in our pajamas into the afternoon (or all day) if we want to.

 Just out-of-the-bath baby.

 Little toes (and mine desperately needing a pedicure-sorry!)

Tongue smiles.

Snuggling.

Rainbows.  And hail.  And sun and snow.  And rain.  All in one day.

Rolled-up blue jeans.

New sweaters.

 Mermaids.  Or rather kicking out of the jammie leg and snuggling them into one by the morning and looking like a mermaid.

Joy.

Joy.

I'll take all of it.

Camera Woes

March is quietly slipping away.  I don't really know where it went.  Avery will be six months old at the end of the month and I really can't believe it.  I was having trouble with my camera and have been researching cameras and bugging at least three people about the pros and cons of different cameras.  And I finally decided on one.  I was super excited until I kept getting unfocused shots-in "auto" setting.  I knew the camera and lens were new to us but I didn't think I was that bad that I couldn't even get a clear picture.  So for about every forty shots like this:

We would get one kind of right.  But not consistent enough to feel comfortable about it.   Here are a a few good ones.

My friend Kelly is a photographer and she played around with my camera at a baby shower the other day.   She could put my camera on "manual" and get some great shots.   But I

 

 

Then she took my camera to see if it was my lens or the camera causing some troubles.  The lens was fine...and she felt that the camera might be alright but it seemed like way too much fussing with it to me.  So I am sending it back.  Tomorrow.  I did start to fiddle with some settings the other day and took these:

 

And the last couple from right after I received the camera.  A little fuzzy to me but still cute nonetheless.

 

I don't trust that the auto setting is fully working right on this camera and I need that as a back-up while I learn to shoot more in manual settings.  I am very excited about what the prime lens can do though!  

Getting the Itch....

...to move.   OK, not really but am feeling the need for some sort of change since this is the first time in 9 YEARS that we are not moving!  There is always such excitement (and stress) moving to a new place but it is kind of nice knowing we don't have to move our whole household right now.  Especially with a baby!  We left Japan in 2003 which is the longest we have lived anywhere (as a married couple), then we spent 18 months in Idaho, three months in Nevada, two years in Panama City, FL and two years in Fort Walton Beach, FL.  And we have been in our current city now for two years and about two months.  So that explains why I am wanting to deep clean our whole house, paint, re-arrange furniture and re-hang some pictures.  This is the plan I have in my brain but right now I am lucky to keep up with the dishes in a day.  Extra bonus if I cook!  Or get a load of laundry done.  Or a blog post!  But I am OK with that.  If our kiddos are cared for, healthy and happy then I am committing to not having to have a perfectly clean and organized house to sacrifice time with these guys...

Some of the going-ons during the last few weeks...here are the chicken and duck feet drawn by Jack and Wyatt respectively.

Happy to see daddy.

Out of approximately 60 attempts at a Valentine's picture of all three of these kiddos, this is the best picture I could get.

Happy to see Wyatt:

Avery is really using her hands and grabbing anything that crosses her path.

The boys played with play-doh for a couple of the hours the other day with Avery watching in the background.  I love her position here.

Sweet smiles.

Snow removal helpers:

Such little men!  Ready to play in the snow.  Below are two of my new favorite pics of the boys.

 The ohsosweet sleepy eye-rub:

 Already pulling herself up when she is in a reclined position:

 Oh stop!

 Stop the cuteness!

 Okay.

 Don't stop.

Wyatt making us laugh.  He was walking around with my boppy saying "look at my canoe!"

And having a fun glo-stick bath night in the big tub.

...complete with goggles.

These two play hard.  And they crash hard.  Good night!